Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 4, 2026

Electrophysiological Recordings of Single-cell Ion Currents Under Well-defined Shear Stress
Published on: August 2, 2019
Role of shear stress direction in endothelial mechanotransduction
1UCSD, La Jolla, CA, USA.
Abstract:
Fluid shear stress due to blood flow can modulate functions of endothelial cells (ECs) in blood vessels by activating mechano-sensors, signaling pathways, and gene and protein expressions. Laminar shear stress with a definite forward direction causes transient activations of many genes that are atherogenic, followed by their down-regulation; laminar shear stress also up-regulates genes that inhibit EC growth. In contrast, disturbed flow patterns with little forward direction cause sustained activations of these atherogenic genes and enhancements of EC mitosis and apoptosis. In straight parts of the arterial tree, laminar shear stress with a definite forward direction has anti-atherogenic effects. At branch points, the complex flow patterns with little net direction are atherogenic. Thus, the direction of shear stress has important physiological and pathophysiological effects on vascular ECs.
More Related Videos
09:20The Assembly and Application of 'Shear Rings': A Novel Endothelial Model for Orbital, Unidirectional and Periodic Fluid Flow and Shear Stress
Published on: October 31, 2016
08:50Gene Expression Analysis of Endothelial Cells Exposed to Shear Stress Using Multiple Parallel-plate Flow Chambers
Published on: October 21, 2018
Related Concept Videos
Tension Response at Adherens Junctions
α-Catenin as a Mechanosensory Protein
The α-catenin of adherens junctions is an allosteric protein with three VH (vinculin homology) domains...
Cell-matrix's Response to Mechanical Forces
Anchoring junctions mechanically attach a cell to the...
Shearing Stress
The average shearing stress can be calculated by dividing the shear by the area of the cross-section.
Shearing Strain
Stress: General Loading Conditions
The shearing force, possessing potential directionality within the plane of the section, is simplified into two component forces running parallel to the x and y axes.
Navier–Stokes Equations