Caenorhabditis elegans UNC-98, a C2H2 Zn finger protein, is a novel partner of UNC-97/PINCH in muscle adhesion complexes.

ABSTRACT: To further understand the assembly and maintenance of the muscle contractile apparatus, we have identified a new protein, UNC-98, in the muscle of Caenorhabditis elegans. unc-98 mutants display reduced motility and a characteristic defect in muscle structure. We show that the major defect in the mutant muscle is in the M-lines and dense bodies (Z-line analogs). Both functionally and compositionally, nematode M-lines and dense bodies are analogous to focal adhesions of nonmuscle cells. UNC-98 is a novel 310-residue polypeptide consisting of four C2H2 Zn fingers and several possible nuclear localization signal and nuclear export signal sequences. By use of UNC-98 antibodies and green fluorescent protein fusions (to full-length UNC-98 and UNC-98 fragments), we have shown that UNC-98 resides a

SUBMITTER: Mercer KB 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC194897 | biostudies-literature | 2003 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature