The ability to sense physical forces is conserved across all organisms. Cells convert mechanical stimuli into electrical or chemical signals via mechanically activated ion channels. In recent years, the identification of new families of mechanosensitive ion channels-such as PIEZO and OSCA/TMEM63 channels-along with surprising insights into well-studied mechanosensitive channels have driven further developments in the mechanotransduction field. Several well-characterized mechanosensory roles such as touch, blood-pressure sensing and hearing are now linked with primary mechanotransducers. Unanticipated roles of mechanical force sensing continue to be uncovered. Furthermore, high-resolution structures representative of nearly every family of mechanically activated channel described so far have underscored their diversity while advancing our understanding of the biophysical mechanisms of pressure sensing. Here we summarize recent discoveries in the physiology and structures of known mechanically activated ion channel families and discuss their implications for understanding the mechanisms of mechanical force sensing.

中文翻译：

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机械激活离子通道的结构和生理学发现

感知物理力的能力在所有生物体中都是守恒的。细胞通过机械激活的离子通道将机械刺激转化为电信号或化学信号。近年来，新的机械敏感离子通道家族（如 PIEZO 和 OSCA/TMEM63 通道）的鉴定以及对经过充分研究的机械敏感通道的惊人见解推动了机械转导领域的进一步发展。几个特征鲜明的机械感应角色，如触摸、血压感应和听力，现在都与初级机械传感器相关联。机械力传感的意外作用继续被发现。此外，代表迄今为止描述的几乎所有机械激活通道家族的高分辨率结构都强调了它们的多样性，同时促进了我们对压力传感生物物理机制的理解。在这里，我们总结了已知机械激活离子通道家族的生理学和结构的最新发现，并讨论了它们对理解机械力传感机制的意义。