Issue 10, 2015

Multiscale mechanobiology: computational models for integrating molecules to multicellular systems

Abstract

Mechanical signals exist throughout the biological landscape. Across all scales, these signals, in the form of force, stiffness, and deformations, are generated and processed, resulting in an active mechanobiological circuit that controls many fundamental aspects of life, from protein unfolding and cytoskeletal remodeling to collective cell motions. The multiple scales and complex feedback involved present a challenge for fully understanding the nature of this circuit, particularly in development and disease in which it has been implicated. Computational models that accurately predict and are based on experimental data enable a means to integrate basic principles and explore fine details of mechanosensing and mechanotransduction in and across all levels of biological systems. Here we review recent advances in these models along with supporting and emerging experimental findings.

Graphical abstract: Multiscale mechanobiology: computational models for integrating molecules to multicellular systems

Article information

Article type
Review Article
Submitted
11 Feb 2015
Accepted
13 May 2015
First published
19 May 2015

Integr. Biol., 2015,7, 1093-1108

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