Understanding how the information is conveyed from outside to inside the cell is a critical challenge for all biologists involved in signal transduction. The flow of information initiated by cell-cell and cell-extracellular matrix contacts is mediated by the formation of adhesion complexes involving multiple proteins. Inside adhesion complexes, connective membrane skeleton (CMS) proteins are si...

Three cell adhesion molecules are present at the axoglial junctions that form between the axon and myelinating glia on either side of nodes of Ranvier. These include an axonal complex of contacin-associated protein (Caspr) and contactin, which was proposed to bind NF155, an isoform of neurofascin located on the glial paranodal loops. Here, we show that NF155 binds directly to contactin and that...

Fasciclin I is a membrane-associated glycoprotein that is regionally expressed on a subset of fasciculating axons during neuronal development in insects; it is expressed on apposing cell surfaces, suggesting a role in specific cell adhesion. In this paper we show that Drosophila fasciclin I is a novel homophilic cell adhesion molecule. When the nonadhesive Drosophila S2 cells are transfected wi...

trans-fatty acids (tfa) are known as a risk factor for coronary artery diseases. trans-11 vaccenic acid [va; 18:1(n-9)], known as the major trans fatty acid in milk fat, is a positional and geometric isomer of oleic acid and a precursor of conjugated linoleic acid (cla) in human . this study was carried out in order to investigate the effect of cis and trans vaccenic acids on expression of intr...

Cadherins are a family of cell adhesion molecules that exhibit calcium-dependent, homophilic binding. Their function depends on both an HisAlaVal sequence in the first extracellular domain, EC1, and the interaction of a conserved cytoplasmic region with intracellular proteins. T-cadherin is an unusual member of the cadherin family that lacks the HisAlaVal motif and is anchored to the membrane t...

We have used a model system to explore the importance of long-range lateral diffusion of membrane proteins in specific membrane-membrane adhesion. Single, cell-size phospholipid vesicles containing a dinitrophenyl (DNP)-lipid hapten were maneuvered into contact with rat basophilic leukemia (RBL) cells carrying fluorescent anti-DNP IgE in their cell-surface Fc epsilon receptors. Upon cell-vesicl...

Spatially localized proteolysis represents an elegant means by which neuronal activity dependent changes in synaptic structure, and thus experience dependent learning and memory, can be achieved. In vitro and in vivo studies suggest that matrix metalloproteinase and adamalysin activity is concentrated at the cell surface, and emerging evidence suggests that increased peri-synaptic expression, r...