Invited Review: Role of mechanophysiology in aging of ECM: effects of changes in mechanochemical transduction

• Published in: Journal of applied physiology (1985) 2003-11, Vol.95 (5), p.2134-2141
• Main Authors: Silver, Frederick H, DeVore, Dale, Siperko, Lorraine M
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aging; Aging - physiology; Animals; Connective Tissue - physiology; Extracellular Matrix - physiology; Humans; Mechanotransduction, Cellular - physiology; Tissues
• ISSN: 8750-7587; 1522-1601
• DOI: 10.1152/japplphysiol.00429.2003

1 Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Piscataway, New Jersey 08854; 2 Xium, LLC, Chelmsford, Massachusetts 01824; and 3 Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Pathology, Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine, Rootstown, Ohio 44272 Mechanical forces play a role in the development and evolution of extracellular matrices (ECMs) found in connective tissue. Gravitational forces acting on mammalian tissues increase the net muscle forces required for movement of vertebrates. As body mass increases during development, musculoskeletal tissues and other ECMs are able to adapt their size to meet the increased mechanical requirements. However, the control mechanisms that allow for rapid growth in tissue size during development are altered during maturation and aging. The purpose of this mini-review is to examine the relationship between mechanical loading and cellular events that are associated with downregulation of mechanochemical transduction, which appears to contribute to aging of connective tissue. These changes result from decreases in growth factor and hormone levels, as well as decreased activation of the phosphorelay system that controls cell division, gene expression, and protein synthesis. Studies pertaining to the interactions among mechanical forces, growth factors, hormones, and their receptors will better define the relationship between mechanochemical transduction processes and cellular behavior in aging tissues. phosphorelay system; extracellular matrix; connective tissue; collagen; mechanical forces Address for reprint requests and other correspondence: F. H. Silver, Dept. of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, 675 Hoes Lane, Piscataway, NJ 08854 (E-mail: silverfr{at}umdnj.edu ).