On the possible role of cytoskeletal filamentous networks in intracellular signaling: An approach based on percolation

Signaling in multicellular organisms is a challenging problem, for it requires the understanding of processes at drastically varying scales, at molecular, cellular and multicellular levels. As an embryo develops it must coordinate cell division, cellular adhesion and migration, and ultimately form a properly functioning organism. Extracellular morphogens and direct cell-to-cell interactions are used to establish and redefine the pattern of the developmental process. The associated extracellular signals must be sensed by the cells and transmitted eventually to the nucleus to coordinate with internal signals to induce the appropriate changes in gene activities. The cell-to-cell or environment-to-cell communication requires intricate signal transduction mechanisms whose importance is clearly not restricted to development.