The Role of Integrins in Osteocyte Response to Mechanical Stimulus

Bone is an exceptional material that is efficiently lightweight, possesses excellent mechanical strength and can also adapt itself in response to changes in physical activity by means of coordinated physiological processes known as modelling and remodelling. The response of bone to mechanical loading is thought to be regulated by mechanosensitive osteocyte cells that can direct the alteration of bone mass, by osteoblasts and osteoclasts, and thereby play an important role in optimizing bone strength. The mechanisms by which osteocytes sense their mechanical environment are not well understood. It has been proposed that integrin-based (α_Vβ₃) attachments to ECM on osteocyte cell processes may facilitate mechanosensation in osteocytes [1,2]. While previous studies have shown that integrin beta;1 plays an important role in response to mechanical stimulus, the role of integrin α_Vβ₃ in osteocyte mechanotransduction has yet to be investigated [3,4].