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1: Nature. 2007 Dec 6;450(7171):832-7.
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The molecular architecture of cadherins in native epidermal desmosomes.

Al-Amoudi A, Díez DC, Betts MJ, Frangakis AS.

European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Meyerhofstr. 1, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany.

Desmosomes are cadherin-based adhesive intercellular junctions, which are present in tissues such as heart and skin. Despite considerable efforts, the molecular interfaces that mediate adhesion remain obscure. Here we apply cryo-electron tomography of vitreous sections from human epidermis to visualize the three-dimensional molecular architecture of desmosomal cadherins at close-to-native conditions. The three-dimensional reconstructions show a regular array of densities at approximately 70 A intervals along the midline, with a curved shape resembling the X-ray structure of C-cadherin, a representative 'classical' cadherin. Model-independent three-dimensional image processing of extracted sub-tomograms reveals the cadherin organization. After fitting the C-cadherin atomic structure into the averaged sub-tomograms, we see a periodic arrangement of a trans W-like and a cis V-like interaction corresponding to molecules from opposing membranes and the same cell membrane, respectively. The resulting model of cadherin organization explains existing two-dimensional data and yields insights into a possible mechanism of cadherin-based cell adhesion.

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PMID: 18064004 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]