Molecular and Cellular Mechanobiology

This book will cover the cutting-edge developments in molecular and cellular mechanobiology to date. Readers will have a clear understanding of mechanobiology at the molecular and cellular levels, encompassing the mechanosensors, transducers, and transcription. An integrative approach across different scales from molecular sensing to mechanotransduction and gene modulation for physiological regulation of cellular functions will be explored, as well as applications to pathophysiological states in disease. A comprehensive understanding of the roles of physicochemical microenvironment and intracellular responses in determining cellular function in health and disease will also be discussed.

This book will cover the cutting-edge developments in molecular and cellular mechanobiology to date. Readers will have a clear understanding of mechanobiology at the molecular and cellular levels, encompassing the mechanosensors, transducers, and transcription. An integrative approach across different scales from molecular sensing to mechanotransduction and gene modulation for physiological regulation of cellular functions will be explored, as well as applications to pathophysiological states in disease. A comprehensive understanding of the roles of physicochemical microenvironment and intracellular responses in determining cellular function in health and disease will also be discussed.

Part 1. Mechanosensors.- The Primary Cilium as a Strain Amplifying Microdomain for Mechanotransduction at the Cell Membrane.- Vascular Endothelial Mechanosensors in Response to Fluid Shear Stress.- Cadherins in Mechanotransduction.- Perspectives of FRET Imaging to study Epigenetics and Mechanobiology in the Nucleus.- Part 2. Transducers.- Emerging Roles of YAP/TAZ in Mechanobiology.- Role of Rho GTPases in Mechanobiology.- Illuminating Cell Adhesion: Modern Microscopy Approaches to Study Integrin-Based Focal Adhesions.- Part 3. Epigenetic and Genetic Regulations in the Nucleus.- Mechanotransduction to Epigenetic Remodeling.- The Nuclear Lamina: From Mechano-Sensing in Differentiation to Cancer Cell Migration.- Role of Cell Geometry on Nuclear Mechanics, Chromosome Reorganization, and Gene Expression.- Part 4. Applications.- Mechanobiological Control of Cell Fate for Applications in Cardiovascular Regenerative Medicine.- Heart Valve Mechanobiology in Development and Disease.- Molecular and Cellular Mechanobiology of Cancer.