Cell and extracellular matrix (ECM) biomechanics emerge as a distinct feature during the development and progression of colorectal cancer (CRC). Polycystins are core mechanosensitive protein molecules that mediate mechanotransduction in a variety of epithelial cells. Polycystin-1 (PC1) and polycystin-2 (PC2) are engaged in signal transduction mechanisms and during alterations in calcium influx, which regulate cellular functions such as proliferation, differentiation, orientation, and migration in cancer cells. Recent findings implicate polycystins in the deregulation of such functions and the formation of CRC invasive phenotypes. Polycystins participate in all aspects of the cell's biomechanical network, from the perception of extracellular mechanical cues to focal adhesion protein and nuclear transcriptional complexes. Therefore, polycystins could be employed as novel biomarkers and putative targets of selective treatment in CRC.
Keywords: colorectal cancer; mechanobiology; mechanotransduction; polycystins; prognostic biomarkers.