Table 1

Mechanical signal-transducing pathways in cancer

Physical signals	Mechanical signals	Stress parameters	Target molecules/pathways	Effectiveness of mechanical signals	References
Matrix stiffness	ECM rigidity	8.6–55 kPa	FAK/phosphopaxillin/vinculin pathway	Induce migration of mouse embryonic fibroblasts	⁵⁷
	Matrix rigidity	1023, 7307, and 22,692 Pa	ROCK signaling	Enhance the invasive migration of cancer cells	⁵⁸
	Matrix stiffness	1, 4, and 25 kPa	E-cadherin/β-catenin/YAP/TAZ	Induce EMT and promote chemoresistance in pancreatic cancer cells	⁵⁹
	Matrix stiffness	150 and 5700 Pa	TWIST1-G3BP2	Drive EMT and tumor metastasis of breast tumors	⁶⁰
	Microenvironmental stiffness	0.08–119 kPa	EGFR signaling	Enhance glioma cell proliferation	⁶¹
Shear stress	Fluid shear	2 dyne/cm²	IGF-2 and VEGF signaling pathways	Promote chondrosarcoma cell invasion	⁶²
	Interstitial flow	0.2 µm/s	CCR7 signaling	Direct tumor cell migration	³²
	Interstitial fluid flow	0.05–0.1 µm/s	CXCR4/CXCL12 and MEK/ERK	Increase invasion of hepatocellular carcinoma cell	⁶³
	Low shear stress	1.8 dyne/cm²	FAK/Src and ROCK/p-MLC pathways	Induce breast cancer cell motility and adhesion	⁶⁴
	Fluid shear stress	2.25–20 dyne/cm²	ERK-GSK3β	Promote EMT	⁶⁵
Compressive stress	Solid stress	4.0 mm Hg	GDF15/Akt/CREB1 pathway	Induce migration of pancreatic cancer cells	⁶⁶
	Compressive strains	1% strain	ERK1/2-RUNX2	Promote drug resistance of tumor cells	⁶⁷
	Compressive stress	10 kPa	p27^Kip1	Inhibit proliferation in tumor spheroids	⁶⁸