Mechanical signalling affects multiple biological processes during development and in adult organisms, including cell fate transitions, cell migration, morphogenesis and immune responses. Here, we review recent insights into the mechanisms and functions of two main routes of mechanical signalling: outside-in mechanical signalling, such as mechanosensing of substrate properties or shear stresses; and mechanical signalling regulated by the physical properties of the cell surface itself. We discuss examples of how these two classes of mechanical signalling regulate stem cell function, as well as developmental processes in vivo. We also discuss how cell surface mechanics affects intracellular signalling and, in turn, how intracellular signalling controls cell surface mechanics, generating feedback into the regulation of mechanosensing. The cooperation between mechanosensing, intracellular signalling and cell surface mechanics has a profound impact on biological processes. We discuss here our understanding of how these three elements interact to regulate stem cell fate and development.

机械信号传导影响发育过程中和成年生物体的多种生物过程，包括细胞命运转变、细胞迁移、形态发生和免疫反应。在这里，我们回顾了对机械信号两种主要途径的机制和功能的最新见解：由外而内的机械信号，例如基材特性或剪切应力的机械传感；以及由细胞表面本身的物理特性调节的机械信号。我们讨论这两类机械信号如何调节干细胞功能以及体内发育过程的例子。我们还讨论了细胞表面力学如何影响细胞内信号传导，以及细胞内信号传导如何控制细胞表面力学，从而产生机械传感调节的反馈。机械传感、细胞内信号传导和细胞表面力学之间的合作对生物过程具有深远的影响。我们在这里讨论我们对这三个要素如何相互作用来调节干细胞命运和发育​​的理解。