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Abstract
Desmosomes are morphologically and biochemically defined cell-cell junctions that are required for maintaining the mechanical integrity of skin and the heart in adult mammals. Furthermore, since mice with null mutations in desmosomal plaque proteins (plakoglobin and desmoplakin) die in utero, it is also evident that desmosomes are indispensable for normal embryonic development. This review focuses on the role of desmosomes in vivo. We will summarize the effects of mutations in desmosomal genes on pre- and post-embryonic development of mouse and man and discuss recent findings relating to the specific role of desmosomal cadherins in skin differentiation and homeostasis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xing Cheng
- Department of Dermatology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
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2
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Nitoiu D, Etheridge SL, Kelsell DP. Insights into Desmosome Biology from Inherited Human Skin Disease and Cardiocutaneous Syndromes. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2014; 21:129-40. [DOI: 10.3109/15419061.2014.908854] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
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3
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Abstract
Desmosomes are intercellular adhesive junctions that are particularly prominent in tissues experiencing mechanical stress, such as the heart and epidermis. Whereas the related adherens junction links actin to calcium-dependent adhesion molecules known as classical cadherins, desmosomes link intermediate filaments (IF) to the related subfamily of desmosomal cadherins. By tethering these stress-bearing cytoskeletal filaments to the plasma membrane, desmosomes serve as integrators of the IF cytoskeleton throughout a tissue. Recent evidence suggests that IF attachment in turn strengthens desmosomal adhesion. This collaborative arrangement results in formation of a supracellular network, which is critical for imparting mechanical integrity to tissues. Diseases and animal models targeting desmosomal components highlight the importance of desmosomes in development and tissue integrity, while the downregulation of individual protein components in cancer metastasis and wound healing suggests their importance in cell homeostasis. This chapter will provide an update on desmosome composition, function, and regulation, and will also discuss recent work which raises the possibility that desmosome proteins do more than play a structural role in tissues where they reside.
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Brooke MA, Nitoiu D, Kelsell DP. Cell-cell connectivity: desmosomes and disease. J Pathol 2011; 226:158-71. [PMID: 21989576 DOI: 10.1002/path.3027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 127] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2011] [Revised: 10/03/2011] [Accepted: 10/03/2011] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
Cell-cell connectivity is an absolute requirement for the correct functioning of cells, tissues and entire organisms. At the level of the individual cell, direct cell-cell adherence and communication is mediated by the intercellular junction complexes: desmosomes, adherens, tight and gap junctions. A broad spectrum of inherited, infectious and auto-immune diseases can affect the proper function of intercellular junctions and result in either diseases affecting specific individual tissues or widespread syndromic conditions. A particularly diverse group of diseases result from direct or indirect disruption of desmosomes--a consequence of their importance in tissue integrity, their extensive distribution, complex structure, and the wide variety of functions their components accomplish. As a consequence, disruption of desmosomal assembly, structure or integrity disrupts not only their intercellular adhesive function but also their functions in cell communication and regulation, leading to such diverse pathologies as cardiomyopathy, epidermal and mucosal blistering, palmoplantar keratoderma, woolly hair, keratosis, epidermolysis bullosa, ectodermal dysplasia and alopecia. Here, as well as describing the importance of the other intercellular junctions, we focus primarily on the desmosome, its structure and its role in disease. We will examine the various pathologies that result from impairment of desmosome function and thereby demonstrate the importance of desmosomes to tissues and to the organism as a whole.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew A Brooke
- Centre for Cutaneous Research, Blizard Institute, Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, UK
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Oktarina D, van der Wier G, Diercks G, Jonkman M, Pas H. IgG-induced clustering of desmogleins 1 and 3 in skin of patients with pemphigus fits with the desmoglein nonassembly depletion hypothesis. Br J Dermatol 2011; 165:552-62. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2133.2011.10463.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
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Affiliation(s)
- Bhushan V Desai
- Department of Pathology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL 60611, USA
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Garrod D, Chidgey M. Desmosome structure, composition and function. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-BIOMEMBRANES 2007; 1778:572-87. [PMID: 17854763 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbamem.2007.07.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 382] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2007] [Revised: 07/19/2007] [Accepted: 07/20/2007] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Desmosomes are intercellular junctions of epithelia and cardiac muscle. They resist mechanical stress because they adopt a strongly adhesive state in which they are said to be hyper-adhesive and which distinguishes them from other intercellular junctions; desmosomes are specialised for strong adhesion and their failure can result in diseases of the skin and heart. They are also dynamic structures whose adhesiveness can switch between high and low affinity adhesive states during processes such as embryonic development and wound healing, the switching being signalled by protein kinase C. Desmosomes may also act as signalling centres, regulating the availability of signalling molecules and thereby participating in fundamental processes such as cell proliferation, differentiation and morphogenesis. Here we consider the structure, composition and function of desmosomes, and their role in embryonic development and disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Garrod
- Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Manchester, Michael Smith Building, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PT, UK.
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Getsios S, Amargo EV, Dusek RL, Ishii K, Sheu L, Godsel LM, Green KJ. Coordinated expression of desmoglein 1 and desmocollin 1 regulates intercellular adhesion. Differentiation 2004; 72:419-33. [PMID: 15606501 DOI: 10.1111/j.1432-0436.2004.07208008.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 78] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Desmoglein 1 (Dsg1) is a component of desmosomes present in the upper epidermis and can be targeted by autoimmune antibodies or bacterial toxins, resulting in skin blistering diseases. These defects in tissue integrity are believed to result from compromised desmosomal adhesion; yet, previous attempts to directly test the adhesive roles of desmosomal cadherins using normally non-adherent L cells have yielded mixed results. Here, two complementary approaches were used to better resolve the molecular determinants for Dsg1-mediated adhesion: (1) a tetracycline-inducible system was used to modulate the levels of Dsg1 expressed in L cell lines containing desmocollin 1 (Dsc1) and plakoglobin (PG) and (2) a retroviral gene delivery system was used to introduce Dsg1 into normal human epidermal keratinocytes (NHEK). By increasing Dsg1 expression relative to Dsc1 and PG, we were able to demonstrate that the ratio of Dsg1:Dsc1 is a critical determinant of desmosomal adhesion in fibroblasts. The distribution of Dsg1 was organized at areas of cell-cell contact in the multicellular aggregates that formed in these suspension cultures. Similarly, the introduction of Dsg1 into NHEKs was capable of increasing the aggregation of single cell suspensions and further enhanced the adhesive strength of intact epithelial sheets. Endogenous Dsc1 levels were also increased in NHEKs containing Dsg1, providing further support for the coordination of these two desmosomal cadherins in regulating adhesive structures. These Dsg1-mediated effects on intercellular adhesion were directly related to the presence of an intact extracellular domain as ETA, a toxin that specifically cleaves this desmosomal cadherin, inhibited adhesion in both fibroblasts and keratinocytes. Collectively, these observations demonstrate that Dsg1 promotes the formation of intercellular adhesion complexes and suggest that the relative level of Dsg and Dsc expressed at the cell surface regulates this adhesive process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Spiro Getsios
- Department of Pathology and Dermatology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL 60611, USA
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9
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Abstract
Desmoglein 1 is a member of the desmosomal cadherin family that comprise the desmogleins and desmocollins. The desmoglein 1 gene (DSG1) is centromeric to the desmoglein gene cluster and spans approximately 45 kb of 18q12, comprising 15 exons. The transcript encodes a precursor protein of 1049 amino acids that is cleaved to yield a mature protein of 1000 residues. This mature protein is expressed in certain specialized epithelia, and in the epidermis is expressed within the superficial layers. Within the desmosome the extracellular domain of the protein is essential for calcium dependent heterophilic binding to the desmocollins, whereas the intracellular domain is essential for binding to the desmosomal plaque protein, plakoglobin. Desmoglein 1 has been implicated in several human diseases. Mutations within the extracellular domain lead to autosomal dominant striate palmoplantar keratoderma, whereas autoantibodies and strains of Staphylococcus aureus target the extracellular domain in the acquired bullous disorders pemphigus foliaceus and staphylococcal scalded skin syndrome, respectively. Therefore, intact and functionally active desmoglein 1 is essential to epidermal integrity. Here, we review the expression, protein structure, genetics, and molecular interactions of desmoglein 1 and outline the role it plays within the desmosome and how it becomes defective in human disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- N V Whittock
- Institute of Biomedical and Clinical Science, Peninsula Medical School, and Department of Dermatology, Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital, Exeter, UK.
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Whittock NV. Genomic Sequence Analysis of the Mouse Desmoglein Cluster Reveals Evidence for Six Distinct Genes: Characterization of Mouse DSG4, DSG5, and DSG6. J Invest Dermatol 2003. [DOI: 10.1038/jid.2003.10] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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11
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Abstract
Plakophilin 3 (PKP3) is a recently described armadillo protein of the desmosomal plaque, which is synthesized in simple and stratified epithelia. We investigated the localization pattern of endogenous and exogenous PKP3 and fragments thereof. The desmosomal binding properties of PKP3 were determined using yeast two-hybrid, coimmunoprecipitation and colocalization experiments. To this end, novel mouse anti-PKP3 mAbs were generated. We found that PKP3 binds all three desmogleins, desmocollin (Dsc) 3a and -3b, and possibly also Dsc1a and -2a. As such, this is the first protein interaction ever observed with a Dsc-b isoform. Moreover, we determined that PKP3 interacts with plakoglobin, desmoplakin (DP) and the epithelial keratin 18. Evidence was found for the presence of at least two DP-PKP3 interaction sites. This finding might explain how lateral DP-PKP interactions are established in the upper layers of stratified epithelia, increasing the size of the desmosome and the number of anchoring points available for keratins. Together, these results show that PKP3, whose epithelial and epidermal desmosomal expression pattern and protein interaction repertoire are broader than those of PKP1 and -2, is a unique multiprotein binding element in the basic architecture of a vast majority of epithelial desmosomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefan Bonné
- Molecular Cell Biology Unit, Department for Molecular Biomedical Research, Flanders Interuniversity Institute for Biotechnology (VIB)-Ghent University, B-9000 Ghent, Belgium
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12
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Abstract
Desmosomes are essential adhesion structures in most epithelia that link the intermediate filament network of one cell to its neighbor, thereby forming a strong bond. The molecular components of desmosomes belong to the cadherin superfamily, the plakin family, and the armadillo repeat protein family. The desmosomal cadherins are calcium-dependent transmembrane adhesion molecules and comprise the desmogleins and desmocollins. To date, three human desmoglein isoforms have been characterized, namely desmogleins 1, 2, and 3 that are expressed in a tissue- and differentiation-specific manner. Here we have identified and characterized, at the genetic level, a novel human desmoglein cDNA sharing homology with desmogleins 1, 2, 3 and we name this desmoglein 4. The human desmoglein 4 cDNA (3.6 kb) contains an open reading frame of 3120 bp that encodes a precursor protein of 1040 amino acids. The predicted mature protein comprises 991 amino acids with a molecular weight of 107822 Da at pI 4.38. Human desmoglein 4 shares 41% identity with human desmoglein 1, 37% with human desmoglein 2, and 50% with human desmoglein 3. Analysis of the exon/intron organization of the human desmoglein 4 gene (DSG4) demonstrates that it is composed of 16 exons spanning approximately 37 kb of 18q12 and is situated between DSG1 and DSG3. We have demonstrated using RT-PCR on multiple tissue cDNA samples that desmoglein 4 has very specific tissue expression in salivary gland, testis, prostate, and skin.
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Affiliation(s)
- Neil V Whittock
- Institute of Biomedical and Clinical Science, Peninsula Medical School, Exeter, United Kingdom.
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Hanakawa Y, Amagai M, Shirakata Y, Yahata Y, Tokumaru S, Yamasaki K, Tohyama M, Sayama K, Hashimoto K. Differential effects of desmoglein 1 and desmoglein 3 on desmosome formation. J Invest Dermatol 2002; 119:1231-6. [PMID: 12485422 DOI: 10.1046/j.1523-1747.2002.19648.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
The desmoglein plays an important part in the formation of desmosomes. We constructed recombinant adenoviruses containing desmoglein 1 and desmoglein 3 derivatives partly lacking the extracellular domain (desmoglein 1DeltaEC and desmoglein 3DeltaEC, respectively), and full-length desmoglein 1 and desmoglein 3 and studied the involvement of desmoglein 1 and desmoglein 3 in desmosome formation. During low-level expression of desmoglein 3DeltaEC in transduced HaCaT cells, keratin insertion at cell-cell contact sites was only partially inhibited and desmoplakin was partially stained at cell-cell contact sites. Low-level expression of desmoglein 1DeltaEC, however, resulted in complete inhibition of keratin insertion at the cell-cell contact sites, and desmoplakin was stained in perinuclear dots. These results indicate the dominant-negative effect of desmoglein 1DeltaEC on desmosome formation was stronger than that of desmoglein 3DeltaEC. Desmoglein 1DeltaEC coprecipitated plakoglobin to approximately the same extent as desmoglein 3DeltaEC. Therefore, we conclude that the dominant-negative effect of desmoglein 1DeltaEC is not simply due to plakoglobin sequestration. On the other hand, during low-level expression of full-length desmoglein 3 and desmoglein 1, they both colocalized with desmoplakin. During high-level expression, however, keratin insertion at cell-cell contact sites was inhibited in desmoglein 1 but not in desmoglein 3, and desmoplakin was stained at cell-cell contact sites in desmoglein 3 but not in desmoglein 1. These data suggest desmoglein 1 and desmoglein 3 expressed at low level were incorporated into desmosome but at high-level expression, desmoglein 1 disrupted desmosomes but desmoglein 3 did not. Our findings provide biologic evidence that desmoglein 1 and desmoglein 3 play a different functional role in cell-cell adhesion of keratinocytes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yasushi Hanakawa
- Department of Dermatology, School of Medicine, Ehime University, Ehime, Japan.
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14
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Abstract
New evidence from blocking desmosomal adhesion with anti-adhesion peptides reveals a role for desmosomes in cell positioning in morphogenesis. Desmosomal adhesion is necessary for the stability of adherens junctions in epithelial cell sheets. Knockout and mis-expression of desmosomal cadherins in mice suggests that they may function directly or indirectly in regulating epidermal differentiation. Protein kinase C signalling and tyrosine phosphorylation appear to regulate desmosomal adhesion. There are new insights into the role of desmosomal cadherins in autoimmune, infectious and genetic disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- David R Garrod
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Manchester, UK.
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Merritt AJ, Berika MY, Zhai W, Kirk SE, Ji B, Hardman MJ, Garrod DR. Suprabasal desmoglein 3 expression in the epidermis of transgenic mice results in hyperproliferation and abnormal differentiation. Mol Cell Biol 2002; 22:5846-58. [PMID: 12138195 PMCID: PMC133994 DOI: 10.1128/mcb.22.16.5846-5858.2002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 95] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
The desmoglein 1 (Dsg1) and desmocollin 1 (Dsc1) isoforms of the desmosomal cadherins are expressed in the suprabasal layers of epidermis, whereas Dsg3 and Dsc3 are more strongly expressed basally. This differential expression may have a function in epidermal morphogenesis and/or may regulate the proliferation and differentiation of keratinocytes. To test this hypothesis, we changed the expression pattern by overexpressing human Dsg3 under the control of the keratin 1 (K1) promoter in the suprabasal epidermis of transgenic mice. From around 12 weeks of age, the mice exhibited flaking of the skin accompanied by epidermal pustules and thinning of the hair. Histological analysis of affected areas revealed acanthosis, hypergranulosis, hyperkeratosis, localized parakeratosis, and abnormal hair follicles. This phenotype has some features in common with human ichthyosiform diseases. Electron microscopy revealed a mild epidermal spongiosis. Suprabasally, desmosomes showed incorporation of the exogenous protein by immunogold labeling but were normal in structure. The epidermis was hyperproliferative, and differentiation was abnormal, demonstrated by expression of K14 in the suprabasal layer, restriction of K1, and strong induction of K6 and K16. The changes resembled those found in previous studies in which growth factors, cytokines, and integrins had been overexpressed in epidermis. Thus our data strongly support the view that Dsg3 contributes to the regulation of epidermal differentiation. Our results contrast markedly with those recently obtained by expressing Dsg3 in epidermis under the involucrin promoter. Possible reasons for this difference are considered in this paper.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anita J Merritt
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
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