Cortactin is in a complex with VE-cadherin and is required for endothelial adherens junction stability through Rap1/Rac1 activation.

ABSTRACT: Vascular permeability is mediated by Cortactin (Cttn) and regulated by several molecules including cyclic-adenosine-monophosphate, small Rho family GTPases and the actin cytoskeleton. However, it is unclear whether Cttn directly interacts with any of the junctional components or if Cttn intervenes with signaling pathways affecting the intercellular contacts and the cytoskeleton. To address these questions, we employed immortalized microvascular myocardial endothelial cells derived from wild-type and Cttn-knock-out mice. We found that lack of Cttn compromised barrier integrity due to fragmented membrane distribution of different junctional proteins. Moreover, immunoprecipitations revealed that Cttn is within the VE-cadherin-based adherens junction complex. In addition, lack of Cttn slowed-d

SUBMITTER: Moztarzadeh S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10786853 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature