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-Structure paper
Title | Untangling desmosomal knots with electron tomography. |
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Journal, issue, pages | Science, Vol. 302, Issue 5642, Page 109-113, Year 2003 |
Publish date | Oct 3, 2003 |
Authors | Wanzhong He / Pamela Cowin / David L Stokes / |
PubMed Abstract | Cell adhesion by adherens junctions and desmosomes relies on interactions between cadherin molecules. However, the molecular interfaces that define molecular specificity and that mediate adhesion ...Cell adhesion by adherens junctions and desmosomes relies on interactions between cadherin molecules. However, the molecular interfaces that define molecular specificity and that mediate adhesion remain controversial. We used electron tomography of plastic sections from neonatal mouse skin to visualize the organization of desmosomes in situ. The resulting three-dimensional maps reveal individual cadherin molecules forming discrete groups and interacting through their tips. Fitting of an x-ray crystal structure for C-cadherin to these maps is consistent with a flexible intermolecular interface mediated by an exchange of amino-terminal tryptophans. This flexibility suggests a novel mechanism for generating both cis and trans interactions and for propagating these adhesive interactions along the junction. |
External links | Science / PubMed:14526082 |
Methods | EM (tomography) |
Resolution | 20.0 - 30.0 Å |
Structure data | EMDB-1051: Untangling desmosomal knots with electron tomography. EMDB-1052: Untangling desmosomal knots with electron tomography. |
Chemicals | ChemComp-NAG: ChemComp-NDG: ChemComp-CA: |
Source |
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Keywords | STRUCTURAL PROTEIN / CADHERIN; TRANS INTERACTION; DESMOSOME; JUNCTION; ADHESION |