Working out the strength and flexibility of desmosomes

Spiro Getsios, Arthur C. Huen, Kathleen J. Green*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

281 Scopus citations

Abstract

Desmosomes have long been regarded as essential 'spot welds' that externally glue together cells within a tissue, and internally anchor the cytoskeletal network of intermediate filaments. Inactivation of desmosomal components by mutation, autoimmune antibodies and bacterial toxins breaches the structural integrity of embryos and adult tissues. But desmosomes are also functionally flexible organelles that recruit molecules capable of instructing cells within a tissue to undergo proper morphogenesis and patterning.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)271-281
Number of pages11
JournalNature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology
Volume5
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 2004

Funding

The authors would like to thank all of their colleagues who provided input and information prior to publication. Thanks go also to A. P. Kowalczyk, J. R. Stanley, W. I. Weis and members of the Green laboratory for critical reading of the manuscript. We regret that the work of many colleagues and authors could not be cited in this review because of space limitations. The authors are supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health (to K.J.G.) and a Canadian Institutes of Health Research postdoctoral fellowship (to S.G.).

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Molecular Biology
  • Cell Biology

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