Cells can detect and react to the biophysical properties of the extracellular environment
through integrin-based adhesion sites and adapt to the extracellular milieu in a process …

Highlights•Physical cues from the tumor microenvironment strongly affect cancer cell
behavior.•Novel techniques increasingly help to capture those cues in vitro.•Mechanisms for …

Cell function depends on tissue rigidity, which cells probe by applying and transmitting
forces to their extracellular matrix, and then transducing them into biochemical signals. Here …

Vinculin was identified as a component of focal adhesions and adherens junctions nearly 40
years ago. Since that time, remarkable progress has been made in understanding its …

Cell surface transmembrane receptors often form nanometer-to micrometer-scale clusters to
initiate signal transduction in response to environmental cues. Extracellular ligand …

Cellular form and function emerge from complex mechanochemical systems within the
cytoplasm. Currently, no systematic strategy exists to infer large-scale physical properties of …

Chemical and physical properties of the environment control cell proliferation, differentiation,
or apoptosis in the long term. However, to be able to move and migrate through a complex …

During cell migration, the forces generated in the actin cytoskeleton are transmitted across
transmembrane receptors to the extracellular matrix or other cells through a series of …

Stress fibers and focal adhesions are complex protein arrays that produce, transmit and
sense mechanical tension. Evidence accumulated over many years led to the conclusion …

Simple Summary The cytoskeleton is a network of protein fibres within cells that provide
structure and support intracellular transport. Focal adhesions are protein complexes …