Environmental sensing through focal adhesions
Abstract
Recent progress in the design and application of artificial cellular microenvironments and nanoenvironments has revealed the extraordinary ability of cells to adjust their cytoskeletal organization, and hence their shape and motility, to minute changes in their immediate surroundings. Integrin-based adhesion complexes, which are tightly associated with the actin cytoskeleton, comprise the cellular machinery that recognizes not only the biochemical diversity of the extracellular neighbourhood, but also its physical and topographical characteristics, such as pliability, dimensionality and ligand spacing. Here, we discuss the mechanisms of such environmental sensing, based on the finely tuned crosstalk between the assembly of one type of integrin-based adhesion complex, namely focal adhesions, and the forces that are at work in the associated cytoskeletal network owing to actin polymerization and actomyosin contraction.
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Contractile actin filament assembly, stress fiber assembly, and regulation of actin filament-based processes are molecular processes centrally involved in focal adhesion biology.
“all of which are molecular processes centrally involved in focal adhesion biology (Burridge and Guilluy, 2016; Ciobanasu et al., 2012; Geiger et al., 2009; Wozniak et al., 2004).”
From Alzheimer’s genetic risk factor CASS4 controls microglial focal adhesion biology and amyloidosis (2026) · cites this paper as Geiger et al., 2009
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- Authors
- Geiger, B., Spatz, J. P., & Bershadsky, A. D.
- Affiliations
- Heidelberg University (DE)
- Max Planck Society (DE)
- Corresponding author
- Bershadsky, Alexander D.
- Venue
- Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology
- Published
- 2009-01
- Volume
- 10
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 21-33
- ISSN
- 1471-0072 (ISSN-L)
- 1471-0080
- OpenAlex
- W1993006648
- Cited by
- 2,543
- References
- 4
- Citations by year
- 2026: 102 · 2025: 101 · 2024: 92 · 2023: 93 · 2022: 133 · 2021: 141 · 2020: 137 · 2019: 132 · 2018: 147 · 2017: 182 · 2016: 182 · 2015: 162 · 2014: 193 · 2013: 185 · 2012: 188
- FWCI
- 10.06
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (submittedVersion)
- MPG.PuRe (Max Planck Society) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Cell Biology › Cellular Mechanics and Interactions
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Immunology and Allergy › Cell Adhesion Molecules Research
- Physical Sciences › Physics and Astronomy › Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics › Force Microscopy Techniques and Applications
- Keywords
- focal adhesions, mechanotransduction, cell sensing, extracellular matrix, integrins, actin cytoskeleton, actomyosin contraction, actin polymerization, cell shape, cell motility, ligand spacing, extracellular matrix stiffness
- MeSH terms
- Actins, Animals, Cytoskeleton, Environment, Humans, Signal Transduction, Integrins, Focal Adhesions
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