The cross-talk between stem cells and their microenvironment has been shown to have a direct impact on stem cells decisions about proliferation, growth, migration, and differentiation. stem cells. We start with the Tioxolone description of theoretical basis of mechanobiology, continue with the effects of mechanical cues on stem cells, development, pathology, and regenerative medicine, and emphasize the contribution in the field of the development of ex-vivo mechanobiology modelling and computational tools, which allow for evaluating the role of forces on stem cell biology. models of embryogenesis seem to be the only tool for effectively understanding the processes regulating patterning, morphogenesis, and mechanobiology in the peri-implantation human embryo, as far as progresses in the possibility of working with human embryos are made [158,159,160,161]. Nevertheless, it will be necessary to wait more precise characterization of the embryos that they are expected to model, especially given that benchmarks based on mouse biology may not hold true in human, in order to understand if these models accurately recapitulate the molecular events happening in-vivo [143,162]. 3.2. Pathology Advances in mechanobiology suggest that alterations in cell mechanics, ECM structure, or mechanotransduction signals may contribute to the development of many diseases. As a matter of fact, aberrant mechanical signals, which are caused by changes in the physical and structural features of the cell microenvironment or by defects in how cells perceive mechanical inputs, have been associated with the pathogenesis of many diseases [128,163]. For example, clinical evidences show that alterations in cell?ECM interactions can cause cancer [164,165]. In many tumors, ECM production and stiffness are significantly increased when compared to healthy tissue [166,167,168,169]. It has been suggested that cancer stem cells increase ECM stiffness, encouraging metastatic activity, and that tumor stiffness hinders the activity of immune cells. Therefore, some clinical treatments use TGF- inhibitors to reduce ECM proteins secretion and prevent further ECM changes [166]. In human cancers cells, YAP and TAZ have a supra-normal expression level as a cell response to mechanical inputs from the tumor microenvironment [127,128,170]. Likewise, the role of Tioxolone endogenous forces in regulating different neuronal functions is also well established [171,172,173]. Disruptions or alterations of cellular-mechanical properties are associated with neurological diseases, such as Alzheimers disease [174], spread axonal injury, spinal cord injury, concussion, and traumatic brain injuries [175]. It has been shown that this up-regulation of FA proteins, such as vinculin, talin, paxillin, and actin-crosslinking -actinin, causes astrocytes activation and increases the expression of intermediates filaments, including Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein, vimentin, and nestin [176]. Astrocytes hypertrophy and hyperplasia intensifies the stress on surrounding cells and the secretion of ECM proteins, such as collagen IV and laminin, which form a collagenous basement membrane scar, one of the major obstacles to axonal regeneration [177,178,179]. Alterations in mechanical signals are also key factors in the pathophysiology of cardiovascular diseases [180]. In particular, arterial stiffening is recognized as one of the key events in the progression of several cardiovascular diseases, including coronary heart disease, hypertension, atherosclerosis, and stroke [181,182]. Moreover, the high susceptibility of skin to mechanical forces, being exposed to different environmental insults as the most external body layer [183,184], has been correlated to many pathologies, including keloids, scleroderma, and psoriasis [184,185,186,187]. The role of mechanical forces is also well known in bone tissue as well as the effects of biophysical cues in osteoblast differentiation [188,189], mineralisation process, inhibition of osteoclast differentiation, and protection against osteolysis [190,191]. Actually, the malfunctioning of some of these processes appears to be implicated in osteoarthritis and osteoporosis [192]. Moreover, during osteoporosis, Tioxolone mechanotransduction appears to be compromised, as there is an altered distribution of integrin-based mechanosensory complexes regulating Cox-2 expression and PGE2 release in osteocytes [193]. Finally, the recent characterization of eyes mechanobiology has been fundamental in understanding their functioning, angiogenesis, pathologies progression, and therapeutic approaches efficacy [194,195,196]. For instance, ECM proteins that are secreted by the eye stroma in response to chronic inflammation might Rabbit polyclonal to CD80 alter the mechanical integrity of the ECM, which leads to the activation of YAP/TAZ Tioxolone and -catenin signalling pathways that, in turn, enhance the epidermal differentiation of the epithelium. This can lead to corneal squamous cell metaplasia, which causes blindness [197]. 4. Mechanobiology on Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine 4.1. Mechanosensing/Mechanotransduction Signalling Drive Stem Cell Functions The study of mechanobiology in stem cells is usually pivotal in understanding.
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