scholarly journals Wnt-1 modulates cell-cell adhesion in mammalian cells by stabilizing beta-catenin binding to the cell adhesion protein cadherin

1994 ◽  
Vol 124 (5) ◽  
pp. 729-741 ◽  
Author(s):  
L Hinck ◽  
WJ Nelson ◽  
J Papkoff

Wnt-1 homologs have been identified in invertebrates and vertebrates and play important roles in cellular differentiation and organization. In Drosophila, the products of the segment polarity genes wingless (the Wnt-1 homolog) and armadillo participate in a signal transduction pathway important for cellular boundary formation in embryonic development, but functional interactions between the proteins are unknown. We have examined Wnt-1 function in mammalian cells in which armadillo (beta-catenin and plakoglobin) is known to bind to and regulate cadherin cell adhesion proteins. We show that Wnt-1 expression results in the accumulation of beta-catenin and plakoglobin. In addition, binding of beta-catenin to the cell adhesion protein, cadherin, is stabilized, resulting in a concomitant increase in the strength of calcium-dependent cell-cell adhesion. Thus, a consequence of the functional interaction between Wnt-1 and armadillo family members is the strengthening of cell-cell adhesion, which may lead to the specification of cellular boundaries.

1997 ◽  
Vol 110 (8) ◽  
pp. 1013-1022 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.E. Nieset ◽  
A.R. Redfield ◽  
F. Jin ◽  
K.A. Knudsen ◽  
K.R. Johnson ◽  
...  

Cadherins are calcium-dependent, cell surface glycoproteins involved in cell-cell adhesion. To function in cell-cell adhesion, the transmembrane cadherin molecule must be associated with the cytoskeleton via cytoplasmic proteins known as catenins. Three catenins, alpha-catenin, beta-catenin and gamma-catenin (also known as plakoglobin), have been identified. beta-catenin or plakoglobin is associated directly with the cadherin; alpha-catenin binds to beta-catenin/plakoglobin and serves to link the cadherin/catenin complex to the actin cytoskeleton. The domains on the cadherin and betacatenin/plakoglobin that are responsible for protein-protein interactions have been mapped. However, little is known about the molecular interactions between alpha-catenin and beta-catenin/plakoglobin or about the interactions between alpha-catenin and the cytoskeleton. In this study we have used the yeast two-hybrid system to map the domains on alpha-catenin that allow it to associate with beta-catenin/plakoglobin and with alpha-actinin. We also identify a region on alpha-actinin that is responsible for its interaction with alpha-catenin. The yeast two-hybrid data were confirmed with biochemical studies.


1992 ◽  
Vol 118 (3) ◽  
pp. 671-679 ◽  
Author(s):  
K A Knudsen ◽  
M J Wheelock

E- and N-cadherin are members of a family of calcium-dependent, cell surface glycoproteins involved in cell-cell adhesion. Extracellularly, the transmembrane cadherins self-associate, while, intracellularly, they interact with the actin-based cytoskeleton. Several intracellular proteins, collectively termed catenins, have been noted to co-immunoprecipitate with E- and N-cadherin and are thought to be involved in linking the cadherins to the cytoskeleton. Two catenins have been identified recently: a 102-kD vinculin-like protein (alpha-catenin) and a 92-kD Drosophila armadillo/plakoglobin-like protein (beta-catenin). Here, we show that plakoglobin, or an 83-kD plakoglobin-like protein, co-immunoprecipitates and colocalizes with both E- and N-cadherin. The 83-kD protein is immunologically distinct from the 92-kD beta-catenin and, because of its molecular mass, likely represents the cadherin-associated protein called gamma-catenin. Thus, two different members of a plakoglobin family associate with N- and E-cadherin and, together with the 102-kD alpha-catenin, appear to participate in linking the cadherins to the actin-based cytoskeleton.


1996 ◽  
Vol 109 (5) ◽  
pp. 1009-1016
Author(s):  
S. Funamoto ◽  
H. Ochiai

The gp64 protein of Polysphondylium pallidum has been shown to mediate EDTA-stable cell-cell adhesion. To explore the functional role of gp64, we made an antisense RNA expression construct designed to prevent the gene expression of gp64; the construct was introduced into P. pallidum cells and the transformants were characterised. The antisense RNA-expressing clone L3mc2 which had just been harvested at the growth phase tended to re-form in aggregates smaller in size than did the parental cells in either the presence or absence of 10 mM EDTA. In contrast, 6.5-hour starved L3mc2 cells remained considerably dissociated from each other after 5 minutes gyrating, although aggregation gradually increased by 50% during a further 55 minutes gyrating in the presence of 10 mM EDTA. Correspondingly, L3mc2 lacked specifically the cell-cell adhesion protein, gp64. We therefore conclude that the gp64 protein is involved in forming the EDTA-resistant cell-cell contact. In spite of the absence of gp64, L3mc2 exhibited normal developmental processes, a fact which demonstrates that another cell-cell adhesion system exists in the development of Polysphondylium. This is the first report in which an antisense RNA technique was successfully applied to Polysphondylium.


1983 ◽  
Vol 97 (3) ◽  
pp. 944-948 ◽  
Author(s):  
S I Ogou ◽  
C Yoshida-Noro ◽  
M Takeichi

The molecules involved in Ca2+-dependent cell-cell adhesion systems (CDS) in mouse hepatocytes were characterized and compared with those in teratocarcinoma cells. Fab fragments of antibody raised against liver tissues (anti-liver) inhibited Ca2+-dependent aggregation of both liver and teratocarcinoma cells. A monoclonal antibody raised against teratocarcinoma CDS (ECCD-1) also inhibited the Ca2+-dependent aggregation of these two cell types equally. These antibodies induced disruption of cell-cell adhesion in monolayers of hepatocytes. Thus, CDS in these two cell types are not immunologically distinctive. Immunochemical analyses with these antibodies showed that CDS in both hepatocytes and teratocarcinoma cells involved at least two classes of cell surface proteins with molecular weights of 124,000 and 104,000. ECCD-1 selectively bound to hepatocytes but not to fibroblastic cells in liver cell cultures. Thus, the molecular constitution of CDS in hepatocytes and teratocarcinoma stem cells is identical. As ECCD-1 reacts with other classes of embryonic and fetal cells, the molecules identified here could have a major role in cell-cell adhesion in various tissues at any developmental stage of animals.


2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (14) ◽  
pp. 3404 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Dalle Vedove ◽  
Federico Falchi ◽  
Stefano Donini ◽  
Aurelie Dobric ◽  
Sebastien Germain ◽  
...  

Cadherins are a large family of transmembrane calcium-dependent cell adhesion proteins that orchestrate adherens junction formation and are crucially involved in tissue morphogenesis. Due to their important role in cancer development and metastasis, cadherins can be considered attractive targets for drug discovery. A recent crystal structure of the complex of a cadherin extracellular portion and a small molecule inhibitor allowed the identification of a druggable interface, thus providing a viable strategy for the design of cadherin dimerization modulators. Here, we report on a structure-based virtual screening approach that led to the identification of efficient and selective modulators of E-cadherin-mediated cell–cell adhesion. Of all the putative inhibitors that were identified and experimentally tested by cell adhesion assays using human pancreatic tumor BxPC-3 cells expressing both E-cadherin and P-cadherin, two compounds turned out to be effective in inhibiting stable cell–cell adhesion at micromolar concentrations. Moreover, at the same concentrations, one of them also showed anti-invasive properties in cell invasion assays. These results will allow further development of novel and selective cadherin-mediated cell–cell adhesion modulators for the treatment of a variety of cadherin-expressing solid tumors and for improving the efficiency of drug delivery across biological barriers.


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