IMR Press / FBL / Volume 10 / Issue 2 / DOI: 10.2741/1673

Frontiers in Bioscience-Landmark (FBL) is published by IMR Press from Volume 26 Issue 5 (2021). Previous articles were published by another publisher on a subscription basis, and they are hosted by IMR Press on imrpress.com as a courtesy and upon agreement with Frontiers in Bioscience.

Article
Molecular basis of mechanical modulation of endothelial cell migration
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1 Department of Bioengineering and Whitaker Institute of Biomedical Engineering, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
2 Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of California, Berkeley; Berkeley, CA
3 Department of Bioengineering, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT
Front. Biosci. (Landmark Ed) 2005, 10(2), 1985–2000; https://doi.org/10.2741/1673
Published: 1 May 2005
Abstract

Vascular endothelial cells (ECs) play important roles in the regulation of vascular functions. Loss of endothelial integrity can lead to vascular diseases such as stenosis resulting from atherosclerosis. The migration of ECs into wounded area in the vessel wall is required for the restoration of its integrity and functions. EC migration results from a balance of externally applied forces (e.g. shear stress), intracellular forces (e.g., those generated by contractile and cytoskeletal proteins), adhesion force between ECs and extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins, and the force of EC-EC coupling through junction proteins. Shear stress modulates EC migration through the regulation of multiple signaling pathways, gene expression, and the reorganization of cytoskeleton, focal adhesion sites, and cell junctions. Investigations of EC migration under shearing can provide valuable knowledge on vascular remodeling process under physiological and pathological conditions.

Keywords
Shear Stress
Endothelial Cells
Migration
Integrins
Extracellular Matrix
Mechanotransduction
Cytoskeleton
FAK
Rho
Review
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