Metabo-reciprocity in cell mechanics: feeling the demands/feeding the demand

Altered metabolic programs and corruption of tissue architecture are hallmarks of disease. The spatiotemporal control of cell behavior requires transmission of information from the complex structure of tissues to their constituent cells. Cytoskeletal mechanotransduction enables this transmission by sensing mechanical environments and adapting cellular behaviors. However, this process requires energy. Recent findings have shed light on the bidirectional relationship between mechanical forces and upstream and downstream metabolic cues. We discuss recent advances in the reciprocal regulation ('metabo-reciprocity') that allows cells to adapt their metabolic needs to their mechanically constrained environment but can also contribute to adjustable feedback that promotes disease progression.