Piezo1 in immune cells: from mechanosensation to immunoregulation

The immune system is central to host defense against pathogens and the maintenance of organismal homeostasis. Immune cells often reside in or migrate through tissue microenvironments characterized by significant mechanical activity, where they are continuously subjected to diverse mechanical stimuli. Despite the ubiquity of mechanical signals in such contexts, the precise regulatory mechanisms by which these signals control immune cell function in a context-dependent manner remain incompletely understood.

In recent years, the mechanosensitive ion channel Piezo1 has emerged as a core component of cellular mechanical sensing system, attracting considerable attention in immunology. This review integrates the latest research advances to systematically analyze the role of Piezo1 in both innate and adaptive immune cells. We discuss how Piezo1 is widely involved in key immune processes, including cell activation, differentiation, and functional regulation, and highlight the context-dependent nature of Piezo1 signaling, which can drive divergent immune outcomes depending on cellular lineage and pathological microenvironment.

By synthesizing the current evidence, this review provides a theoretical foundation for understanding mechanical signaling in immunity. Crucially, this underscores that the functional duality and context-dependency of Piezo1 present both opportunities and challenges for drug targeting, offering insights for the development of precision immunotherapies that account for specific pathological settings.