Structure, Function, and Regulation of Desmosomes

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: Andrew Kowalczyk, Emory University; Kathleen J. Green, Northwestern University
• Language: English
• Date: 2013-01-01
• Publisher: ELSEVIER ACADEMIC PRESS INC
• Publication Version: Author Accepted Manuscript (After Peer Review)
• Copyright Statement: © 2013 Elsevier Inc.
• License: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International
• Final Published Version (URL): http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-394311-8.00005-4
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: Progress in molecular biology and translational science
• ISSN: 1877-1173
• Volume: 116
• Start Page: 95
• End Page: 118
• Grant/Funding Information: APK is supported by National Institutes of Health R01AR050501 and R01AR048266.; KJG is supported by National Institutes of Health RO1 AR041836, R37 AR043380, and R01 CA122151, by a grant from the Leducq Foundation, and by the Joseph L. Mayberry Senior Endowment.
• Keywords: MICROTUBULE ORGANIZATION; DESMOPLAKIN; INTERMEDIATE-FILAMENTS; BULLOUS IMPETIGO; HYPER-ADHESION; DESMOGLEIN; PKC-ALPHA; Science & Technology; BETA-CATENIN; PEMPHIGUS; Biochemistry & Molecular Biology; Life Sciences & Biomedicine; CELL-ADHESION; Cell Biology
• Research Categories: Health Sciences, Pathology; Biology, Cell

Abstract

Desmosomes are adhesive intercellular junctions that mechanically integrate adjacent cells by coupling adhesive interactions mediated by desmosomal cadherins to the intermediate filament cytoskeletal network. Desmosomal cadherins are connected to intermediate filaments by densely clustered cytoplasmic plaque proteins comprising members of the armadillo gene family, including plakoglobin and plakophilins, and members of the plakin family of cytolinkers, such as desmoplakin. The importance of desmosomes in tissue integrity is highlighted by human diseases caused by mutations in desmosomal genes, autoantibody attack of desmosomal cadherins, and bacterial toxins that selectively target desmosomal cadherins. In addition to reviewing the well-known roles of desmosomal proteins in tissue integrity, this chapter also highlights the growing appreciation for how desmosomal proteins are integrated with cell signaling pathways to contribute to vertebrate tissue organization and differentiation.