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Cellular Fluid Mechanics and Mechanotransduction

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Abstract

Mechanotransduction, the transformation of an applied mechanical force into a cellular biomolecular response, is briefly reviewed focusing on fluid shear stress and endothelial cells. Particular emphasis is placed on recent studies of the surface proteoglycan layer (glycocalyx) as a primary sensor of fluid shear stress that can transmit force to apical structures such as the plasma membrane or the actin cortical web where transduction can take place or to more remote regions of the cell such as intercellular junctions and basal adhesion plaques where transduction can also occur. All of these possibilities are reviewed from an integrated perspective.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biomedical Engineering, City College of New York, New York

    John M. Tarbell & Sheldon Weinbaum

  2. Departments of Mechanical and Biological Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts

    Roger D. Kamm

  3. Department of Biomedical Engineering, City College of New York, New York

    John M. Tarbell

Authors
  1. John M. Tarbell
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  2. Sheldon Weinbaum
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  3. Roger D. Kamm
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Correspondence to John M. Tarbell.

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Tarbell, J.M., Weinbaum, S. & Kamm, R.D. Cellular Fluid Mechanics and Mechanotransduction. Ann Biomed Eng 33, 1719–1723 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10439-005-8775-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10439-005-8775-z

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