Mechanical forces are crucial to the regulation of cell and tissue morphology and function. At
the cellular level, forces influence cytoskeletal organization, gene expression, proliferation,
and survival. Integrin-mediated adhesions are intrinsically mechanosensitive and a large
body of data implicates integrins in sensing mechanical forces. We review the relationship
between integrins and mechanical forces, the role of integrins in cellular responses to
stretch and fluid flow, and propose that some of these events are mechanistically related.