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Related Concept Videos

Intracellular Signaling Cascades01:24

Intracellular Signaling Cascades

Once a ligand binds to a receptor, the signal is transmitted through the membrane and into the cytoplasm. The continuation of a signal in this manner is called signal transduction. Signal transduction only occurs with cell-surface receptors, which cannot interact with most components of the cell, such as DNA. Only internal receptors can interact directly with DNA in the nucleus to initiate protein synthesis. When a ligand binds to its receptor, conformational changes occur that affect the...
Intracellular Signaling Cascades01:24

Intracellular Signaling Cascades

Once a ligand binds to a receptor, the signal is transmitted through the membrane and into the cytoplasm. The continuation of a signal in this manner is called signal transduction. Signal transduction only occurs with cell-surface receptors, which cannot interact with most components of the cell, such as DNA. Only internal receptors can interact directly with DNA in the nucleus to initiate protein synthesis. When a ligand binds to its receptor, conformational changes occur that affect the...
Amplifying Signals via Enzymatic Cascade01:22

Amplifying Signals via Enzymatic Cascade

When a ligand binds to a cell-surface receptor, the receptor's intracellular domain changes shape, which may either activate its enzyme function or allow its binding to other molecules. The initial signal is amplified by most signal transduction pathways. This means that a single ligand molecule can activate multiple molecules of a downstream target. Proteins that relay a signal are most commonly phosphorylated at one or more sites, activating or inactivating the protein. Kinases catalyze the...
Cell-matrix's Response to Mechanical Forces01:13

Cell-matrix's Response to Mechanical Forces

In animal cells, the extracellular matrix allows cells within tissues to withstand external stresses and transmits signals from the outside of the cell to the inside. The extracellular matrix is extensive, and its composition varies between different types of tissues. For example, the reticular fibers and ground substance make up the ECM in loose connective tissue, while collagen and bone minerals make up the ECM of bone tissue. 
Anchoring junctions mechanically attach a cell to the...
Tension Response at Adherens Junctions01:26

Tension Response at Adherens Junctions

The adherens junctions that anchor cells together are multi-protein complexes that dynamically adapt to mechanical stimuli such as tensile forces and shear stress. Mechanosensory proteins in these junctions can sense such mechanical stimuli and undergo a shift in their conformation, resulting in an altered function — a process called mechanotransduction.
α-Catenin as a Mechanosensory Protein
The α-catenin of adherens junctions is an allosteric protein with three VH (vinculin homology) domains...
Intracellular Signaling Affects Focal Adhesions01:17

Intracellular Signaling Affects Focal Adhesions

Integrins act both as extracellular input receivers and as intracellular processing activators. As their name suggests, integrins are entirely integrated into the membrane structure. Their hydrophobic membrane-spanning regions interact with the phospholipid bilayer's hydrophobic region. These membrane receptors provide extracellular attachment sites for effectors like hormones and growth factors. They activate intracellular response cascades when their effectors are bound and active.
Some...

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A Simplified System for Evaluating Cell Mechanosensing and Durotaxis In Vitro
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Signalling cascades in mechanotransduction: cell-matrix interactions and mechanical loading.

L Ramage1, G Nuki, D M Salter

  • 1Osteoarticular Research Group, Centre for Inflammation Research, The Queens Medical Research Institute, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK. lindsayramage@hotmail.co.uk

Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports
|June 23, 2009
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Mechanical loading is vital for maintaining articular cartilage health by stimulating chondrocytes. However, excessive loading disrupts this balance, leading to cartilage degradation and pathology.

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Area of Science:

  • Biomedical Engineering
  • Cell Biology
  • Biochemistry

Background:

  • Articular cartilage is a load-bearing tissue crucial for joint function.
  • Chondrocytes within cartilage respond to mechanical stimuli to maintain tissue integrity.
  • Mechanotransduction is the process by which cells convert mechanical signals into biochemical activity.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To explore the role of mechanical signalling in articular cartilage maintenance.
  • To understand how chondrocytes respond to physiological and excessive mechanical loading.
  • To discuss the link between altered mechanical signalling and cartilage pathology.

Main Methods:

  • Review of existing literature on cartilage mechanobiology.
  • Analysis of cellular responses to mechanical forces (compression, fluid flow).
  • Examination of mechanotransduction pathways involving ion channels and integrins.

Main Results:

  • Physiological mechanical loading stimulates chondrocyte metabolism and matrix synthesis.
  • Mechanical loading induces complex biophysical changes within cartilage (pressure, fluid flow, etc.).
  • Excessive loading causes an imbalance in anabolic and catabolic activity, leading to matrix depletion.

Conclusions:

  • Mechanical signalling is essential for articular cartilage homeostasis.
  • Dysregulation of mechanotransduction in chondrocytes contributes to cartilage degeneration.
  • Understanding these pathways is key to developing treatments for cartilage pathologies.