Mechanisms directing adherens junctions and actin network interactions

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Program summary The balance between cell migration and cell–cell adhesion is crucial during development and is altered in disease states such as metastatic cancers. Cells migrate during development to specific sites when upon contact with other cells; they become stationary and differentiate into tissues. Thus, strong cell–cell adhesion is necessary in maintaining tissue integrity. Changes in cell–cell adhesion reinitiate cell migration during cell turnover or wound healing or allow metastatic cells to scatter to distant organs. The formation and stabilization of cell-cell adhesion complexes (adherens junctions) is essential for metazoan development, organogenesis, and tissue homeostasis, and it also necessary for some pathophysiological conditions, such as wound healing. In contrast, loss of adherens junctions is a hallmark of cancer, leading to unrestricted cell proliferation and metastasis. Cell-cell adherens junctions require the proper assembly of multi-protein complexes at the plasma cell membrane. Here, homotypic interactions between the calcium-binding ectodomains of single transmembrane pass cadherin receptors allow neighboring cells to bind to one another. The interactions of their cytoplasmic tail domains with β-catenin, which in turn binds to α-catenin, appear to direct the formation of adherens junctions, by inhibiting the production of lamellopodia. However, without tension, this ternary cadherin/β-catenin/α-catenin complex does not bind directly to the actin network, which is necessary for stabilizing these junctions and for tissue homeostasis. In the first 3 years of funding by GM094483, we determined the crystal structure of dimeric full-length human α-catenin and of vinculin-bound α-catenin, and these structures and our biochemical and biological studies defined the roles of the vinculin-α-catenin interaction in the formation and stabilization of adherens junctions. By moving from crystal structures and 3D reconstructions to biochemistry and then to biology, the proposed studies will define how adherens junctions are stabilized and control the organization of the actin cytoskeleton. Collectively, our proposed studies will significantly increase our understanding of α-catenin monomer-dimer transitions and their effects on membrane dynamics, migration, and cell adhesion. Importantly, our multi-disciplinary studies will also lay the foundation for understanding how these controls are lost during tumor progression and may suggest new avenues for therapeutic intervention.