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Updated: Jul 10, 2026

Live Cell Response to Mechanical Stimulation Studied by Integrated Optical and Atomic Force Microscopy
Published on: October 4, 2010
Mechanotransduction in striated muscle via focal adhesion kinase
A C Durieux1, D Desplanches, D Freyssenet
1Institute of Anatomy, University of Berne, Berne, Switzerland.
Abstract:
Contractile tissues demonstrate a pronounced capacity to remodel their composition in response to mechanical challenges. Descriptive evidence suggests the upstream involvement of the phosphotransfer enzyme FAK (focal adhesion kinase) in the molecular control of load-dependent muscle plasticity. Thereby FAK evolves as a myocellular transducer of mechanical signals towards downstream transcript expression in myofibres. Recent advances in somatic gene therapy now allow the exploration of the functional involvement of this enzyme in mechanotransduction in intact muscle.
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