Epithelial polarity: Interactions between junctions and apical-basal machinery Journal Article


Authors: Kaplan, N. A.; Liu, X.; Tolwinski, N. S.
Article Title: Epithelial polarity: Interactions between junctions and apical-basal machinery
Abstract: Epithelial polarity is established and maintained by competition between determinants that define the apical and basolateral domains. Cell-cell adhesion complexes, or adherens junctions, form at the interface of these regions. Mutations in adhesion components as well as apical determinants normally lead to an expansion of the basolateral domain. Here we investigate the genetic relationship between the polarity determinants and adhesion and show that the levels of the adhesion protein Armadillo affect competition. We find that in arm mutants, even a modest reduction in the basolateral component lgl leads to a full apical domain expansion or lgl phenotype. By using an allelic series of Armadillo mutations, we show that there is a threshold at which basolateral expansion can be reversed. Further, in embryos lacking the Wingless signaling component zw3, the same full apical expansion occurs again with only a reduction in lgl. We propose a model where zw3 regulates protein levels of apical and adhesion components and suggest that a reciprocal interaction between junctions and polarity modules functions to maintain stable apical and basolateral domains. Copyright © 2009 by the Genetics Society of America.
Keywords: controlled study; gene mutation; mutation; nonhuman; mutant protein; animal cell; phenotype; animals; allele; models, biological; basement membrane; embryo; protein binding; membrane proteins; transcription factors; embryo, nonmammalian; blotting, western; fluorescent antibody technique; regulatory mechanism; tumor suppressor proteins; epithelium cell; epithelial cells; cell polarity; drosophila melanogaster; cell adhesion; drosophila proteins; polarization; armadillo domain protein; apical membrane; molecular model; armadillo domain proteins; wnt1 protein; armadillo
Journal Title: Genetics
Volume: 183
Issue: 3
ISSN: 0016-6731
Publisher: Genetics Society of America  
Date Published: 2009-11-01
Start Page: 897
End Page: 904
Language: English
DOI: 10.1534/genetics.109.108878
PUBMED: 19737741
PROVIDER: scopus
PMCID: PMC2778985
DOI/URL:
Notes: --- - "Cited By (since 1996): 2" - "Export Date: 30 November 2010" - "CODEN: GENTA" - "Source: Scopus"
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  1. Nicole Alouise Kaplan
    5 Kaplan
  2. Xiaoping Liu
    6 Liu