Mechanical regulation of chromatin and transcription

Cells and tissues generate and are exposed to a variety of mechanical forces that act across a range of scales, from tissues to cells to organelles. Forces provide critical signals to inform cell behavior during development and adult tissue homeostasis, and alterations in forces and in their downstream mechanotransduction pathways can influence disease progression. Recent advances have been made in our understanding of the mechanisms by which forces regulate chromatin organization and state and of the mechanosensitive transcription factors that respond to the physical properties of the cell microenvironment to coordinate gene expression, cell states and behaviors. These insights highlight the relevance of mechanosensitive transcriptional regulation to physiology, disease, and emerging therapies.