Several lines of evidence suggest that muscle cells can distinguish between specific mechanical stimuli. To test this concept, we subjected C(2)C(12) myotubes to cyclic uniaxial or multiaxial stretch. Both types of stretch induced an increase in extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) and protein kinase B (PKB/Akt) phosphorylation, but only multiaxial stretch induced ribosomal S6 kinase (p7...
