Anchoring Junctions: Desmosomes and Adherens Junctions
Bricks in a building must be stuck together and also tied somehow to the foundation. Similarly, cells within tissues and organs must be anchored to one another and attached to components of the extracellular matrix. Cells have developed several types of junctional complexes to serve these functions, and in each case, anchoring proteins extend through the plasma membrane to link cytoskeletal proteins in one cell to cytoskeletal proteins in neighboring cells as well as to proteins in the extracellular matrix.
Three types of anchoring junctions are observed, and differ from one another in the cytoskeletal protein anchor as well as the transmembrane linker protein that extends through the membrane:
| Junction | Cytoskeletal Anchor |
Transmembrane Linker |
Ties cell to: |
|---|---|---|---|
| Desmosomes | Intermediate filaments | Cadherin | Other cells |
| Hemidesmosomes | Intermediate filaments | Integrins | EC matrix |
| Adherens junctions | Actin filaments | Cadherin Integrins |
Other cells EC Matrix |
Anchoring-type junctions not only hold cells together but provide tissues with structural cohesion. These junctions are most abundant in tissues that are subject to constant mechanical stress such as skin and heart.
Desmosomes
Desmosomes can be visualized as rivets through the plasma membrane of adjacent cells. Intermediate filaments composed of keratin or desmin are attached to membrane-associated attachment proteins that form a dense plaque on the cytoplasmic face of the membrane. Cadherin molecules form the actual anchor by attaching to the cytoplasmic plaque, extending through the membrane and binding strongly to cadherins coming through the membrane of the adjacent cell.
Hemidesmosomes
Hemidesmosomes form rivet-like links between cytoskeleton and extracellular matrix components such as the basal laminae that underlie epithelia. In electron micrographs they bear strong resemblance to half of a desmosome (hence the name), but are indeed quite distinct. Like desmosomes, they tie to intermediate filaments in the cytoplasm, but in contrast to desmosomes, their transmembrane anchors are integrins rather than cadherins.
Adherens Junctions
Adherens junctions share the characteristic of anchoring cells through their cytoplasmic actin filaments . Similarly to desmosomes and hemidesmosomes, their transmembrane anchors are composed of cadherins in those that anchor to other cells and integrins in those that anchor to extracellular matrix.
There is considerable morphologic diversity among adherens junctions. Those that tie cells to one another are seen as isolated streaks or spots, or as bands that completely encircle the cell. The band-type of adherens junctions (also called zonula adherens) are associated with bundles of actin filaments that also encircle the cell just below the plasma membrane. Spot-like adherens junctions help cells adhere to extracellular matrix both in vivo and in vitro where they are called adhesion plaques.
The cytoskeletal actin filaments that tie into adherens junctions are contractile proteins and in addition to providing an anchoring function, adherens junctions are thought to participate in folding and bending of epithelial cell sheets. Thinking of the bands of actin filaments as being similar to 'drawstrings' allows one to envision how contraction of the bands with an group of cells would distort the sheet into interesting patterns.
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Last updated on November 27, 1996
Comments: rbowen@lamar.colostate.edu