The tricellular vertex-specific adhesion molecule Sidekick facilitates polarised cell intercalation during Drosophila axis extension.

ABSTRACT: In epithelia, tricellular vertices are emerging as important sites for the regulation of epithelial integrity and function. Compared to bicellular contacts, however, much less is known. In particular, resident proteins at tricellular vertices were identified only at occluding junctions, with none known at adherens junctions (AJs). In a previous study, we discovered that in Drosophila embryos, the adhesion molecule Sidekick (Sdk), well-known in invertebrates and vertebrates for its role in the visual system, localises at tricellular vertices at the level of AJs. Here, we survey a wide range of Drosophila epithelia and establish that Sdk is a resident protein at tricellular AJs (tAJs), the first of its kind. Clonal analysis showed that two cells, rather than three cells, contributing Sdk are

SUBMITTER: Finegan TM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6894751 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature