Stretch-activated channels allow ion entry upon the application of forces to the membrane and may serve as a primary mechanism for force sensing. It was further proposed that these channels may play a role in detecting the build up of tension in the tail region to trigger retraction. To test these hypotheses, 3T3 fibroblasts were treated with gadolinium, a heavy metal blocker of stretch-activated channels, both globally and in the frontal and tail regions. |