Cellular responses to mechanical stimuli

Molecular mechanosensors are biomolecules that convert a physical force into an intracellular chemical signal (reviewed in Martino et al. 2018, Li et al. 2022). One of the most common types of mechanosensor is the mechanically gated ion channel such as PIEZO1 (reviewed in Fang et al. 2021). Other mechanosensors include integrins (reviewed in Hirata et al. 2015) and receptors such as AGTR1 and GPR68 (reviewed in Xiao et al. 2023). After activation by force, mechanosensors then activate mechanotransducers such as kinases and channels to amplify and transfer the signal to chemical processes that produce downstream effects such as changes in gene expression, cell growth, and behavior (reviewed in Martino et al. 2018).

Summary from Reactome (R-HSA-9855142), read 2026-09-23.