Oriented cell divisions are essential for the generation of cell diversity and for tissue shaping during morphogenesis. Cells in tissues are mechanically linked to their neighbors, upon which they impose, and from which they experience, physical force. Recent work in multiple systems has revealed that tissue-level physical forces can influence the orientation of cell division. A long-standing question is whether forces are communicated to the spindle orienting machinery via cell shape or directly via mechanosensing intracellular machinery. In this article, we review the current evidence from diverse model systems that show spindles are oriented by tissue-level physical forces and evaluate current models and molecular mechanisms proposed to explain how the spindle orientation machinery responds to extrinsic force.
Keywords: Epithelia; extrinsic forces; spindle orientation; tension.