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(Circulation Research. 2006;98:606.)
© 2006 American Heart Association, Inc.

Reviews

Focal Adhesions

Paradigm for a Signaling Nexus

Lewis H. Romer, Konstantin G. Birukov, Joe G.N. Garcia

From the Departments of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, Pediatrics, and Cell Biology (L.H.R.), Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Md; and the Department of Medicine (K.G.B., J.G.N.G.), University of Chicago, Ill.

Correspondence to Lewis Romer, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Blalock 904/Pediatric Anesthesia and Critical Care, 600 N Wolfe St, Baltimore, MD 21287-4904. E-mail Lromer{at}jhmi.edu

This Review is part of a thematic series on Microdomains in Cardiovascular Signaling, which includes the following articles:

Caveolae and Caveolins in the Cardiovascular System

Focal Adhesions: Paradigm for a Signaling Nexus

Vesicular Trafficking of Tyrosine Kinase Receptors and Associated Proteins in the Regulation of Signaling and Vascular Function

Compartmentation of Cyclic Nucleotide Signaling in the Heart: The Role of A-Kinase Anchoring Proteins

Targeting Cyclic Nucleotide Signaling

G Protein–Coupled Receptor Trafficking
Kathy K. Griendling and David A. Kass Editors

The vascular wall contains intimal endothelium and medial smooth muscle that act as contiguous tissues with tight spatial and functional coordination in response to tonic and episodic input from the bloodstream and the surrounding parenchyma. Focal adhesions are molecular bridges between the intracellular and extracellular spaces that integrate a variety of environmental stimuli and mediate 2-way crosstalk between the extracellular matrix and the cytoskeleton. Focal adhesion components are targets for biochemical and mechanical stimuli that evoke crucial developmental and injury response mechanisms including cell growth, movement, and differentiation, and tailoring of the extracellular microenvironment. Focal adhesions provide the vascular wall constituents with flexible and specific tools for exchanging cues in a complex system. The molecular mechanisms that underlie these vital communications are detailed in this review with the goal of defining future targets for vascular tissue engineering and for the therapeutic modulation of disordered vascular growth, inflammation, thrombosis, and angiogenesis.

Key Words: cell adhesion • extracellular matrix • integrin • mechanical force • cell signaling • focal adhesion • vascular endothelium • vascular smooth muscle

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