http://www.springerlink.com – Mechanotransduction, the conversion of a mechanical stimulus into a cellular response, plays a fundamental role in cell volume regulation, fertilization, gravitaxis, proprioception, and the senses of hearing, touch, and balance. Mechanotransduction also fills important functions in the myocardium, where each cycle of contraction and relaxation leads to dynamic deformations. Since the initial observation of stretch induced muscle growth, our understanding of this complex field has been steadily growing, but remains incomplete. Read more »

http://jp.physoc.org – In contrast to nearly all other sensory systems, the mechanically sensitive ion channel carrying the receptor current into hair cells of the inner ear has not been identified in molecular terms. A number of candidates from at least two different ion channel families have been considered: these include the epithelial sodium channel (ENaC) and acid-sensing ion channel (ASIC) members of the DEG/ENaC superfamily of amiloride-sensitive sodium channels, as well as the TRP channels TRPN1, TRPV4, TRPML3 and TRPA1. Read more »

http://www.uphs.upenn.edu – Physical forces elicit biochemical signalling in a diverse array of cells, tissues and organisms, helping to govern fundamental biological processes. Several hypotheses have been advanced that link physical forces to intracellular signalling pathways, but in many cases the molecular mechanisms of mechanotransduction remain elusive. Here we find that compressive stress shrinks the lateral intercellular space surrounding epithelial cells, and triggers cellular signalling via autocrine binding of epidermal growth factor family ligands to the epidermal growth factor receptor. Read more »

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov – Binding of platelets to fibrinogen via integrin alphaIIbbeta3 stimulates cytoskeletal reorganization and spreading. These responses depend on tyrosine phosphorylation of multiple proteins by Src family members and Syk. Among Src substrates in platelets is ADAP, an adapter with three potential binding partners, SLP-76, VASP and SKAP-HOM. During studies of platelet function under shear flow, we discovered that ADAP(-/-) mouse platelets, unlike ADAP(+/+) platelets, formed unstable rather than stable thrombi in response to carotid artery injury. Read more »

http://www.sciencemag.org – Cells both actively generate and sensitively react to forces through their mechanical framework, the cytoskeleton, which is a nonequilibrium composite material including polymers and motor proteins. We measured the dynamics and mechanical properties of a simple three-component model system consisting of myosin II, actin filaments, and cross-linkers. Read more »

http://www.sciencedirect.com – Recent studies indicate the actin and microtubule cytoskeletons are a final common target of many signaling cascades that influence the developing neuron. Regulation of polymer dynamics and transport are crucial for the proper growth cone motility. This review addresses how actin filaments, microtubules, andtheir associated proteins play crucial roles in growth cone motility, axon outgrowth, and guidance. We present a working model for cytoskeletal regulation of directed axon outgrowth. Read more »

http://www.plosone.org – Intermediate filaments (IFs), in addition to microtubules and microfilaments, are one of the three major components of the cytoskeleton in eukaryotic cells, playing a vital role in mechanotransduction and in providing mechanical stability to cells. Despite the importance of IF mechanics for cell biology and cell mechanics, the structural basis for their mechanical properties remains unknown. Specifically, our understanding of fundamental filament properties, such as the basis for their great extensibility, stiffening properties, and their exceptional mechanical resilience remains limited. Read more »

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov – Mechanosensitive pathways can be categorized as being amongst the oldest response pathways that developed in the history of evolution as they underlie many of the more complex physiological processes that developed later. Day to day examples that can be easily overlooked are the way organisms distinguish sound or respond to touch. This article deals with the mechanosensitive pathways of one particular example of worm, Caenorhabditis elegans. Read more »

http://ajpcell.physiology.org – From article: Read more »

http://jeb.biologists.org – Crickets and many other orthopteran insects face the challenge of gathering sensory information from the environment from a set of multi-modal sensory organs and transforming these stimuli into patterns of neural activity that can encode behaviorally relevant stimuli. The cercal mechanosensory system transduces low frequency air movements near the animal's body and is involved in many behaviors including escape from predators, orientation with respect to gravity, flight steering, aggression and mating behaviors. Read more »