Exam 4 Lesson 39 Flashcards
What are the four requirements of multicellularity?
- cells must interact and exchange signals
- cells must adhere to one another
- cells must exchange resources
- cells must give up freedom to grow, divide, and may even have to die
colonial association of cells
temporarily associated set of cells that are not well adhered
How do cells form an aggregate?
a. interact directly through cell surface proteins
b. interact indirectly by binding to a common extracellular matrix
What is between epithelial tissue and connective tissue?
basal lamina
What is connective tissue made up of?
collagen fibers
How are mechanical stresses transmitted from cell to cell?
by cytoskeletal filaments anchored to cell-matrix and cell-cell adhesion sites
In the case of tension and compression, what role does extracellular matrix play?
it bears the mechanical stresses directly
Two types of cell surface protein interactions
homophilic and heterophilic
what is the main stress bearing component in connective tissue?
extracellular matrix
what is the main stress bearing component in epithelial tissue?
cytoskeletons of cells themselves
what are cadherins?
they are “homotypic” or “hemophilic” cell-cell adhesion molecules in animals
What is extracellular region of cadherin like?
typically, five copies of the extracellular cadherin domain. The copies are separated by flexible hinge regions.
How do extracellular cadherin domains bind at hinge regions?
Ca2+ binds the regions of each hinge, and prevents it from flexing. Form a rigid, curved structure.
How do cadherins generate cell-cell adhesion?
The cadherin domain at the N-terminal tip of one cadherin molecule binds the N-terminal domain from a cadherin molecule on another cell.
What kind of side-to-side interaction exists between cadherins on same cell?
Side to side interactions between their N-terminal head regions, resulting in a linear array that is thought to interact with similar array of another cell (like velcro)
Can cadherins act as ligands? Receptors?
Cadherins are both ligands and receptors.
What is a classical cadherin?
Cadherins that are closely related in sequence throughout their extracellular and intracellular domains. There are five of the cadherin extracellular domains. Also, single transmembrane domain.
What is a nonclassical cadherin?
More distantly related in sequence. Include proteins with known adhesive function, desmocollin and desmogleins.
Flamingo cadherin
belongs to drosophila. 7 transmembrane domain. G protein. Works with development of nervous system.
How does one create many different cadherin-like proteins from a single genomic locus?
differential splicing
How are cadherins expressed in different tissues?
Different tissues express different isoforms of cadherin, which allows for homotypic assembly.
What characterizes neural crest cells? What are they progenitors of?
They are undifferentiated and migratory.
They are progenitors of the peripheral nervous system, endocrine cells, connective tissue, melanocytes that provide pigmentation in skin and hair follicles.
How does in vitro experiment show us function of cadherin in cell adhesion?
Cells expressing no cadherin do not aggregate.
Cells expressing different cadherins sort themselves.
Aggregation is quantitative, based on the level of cadherin expression. (Cells expressing more cadherin adhere more strongly and end up internally).
What is EGTA?
a calcium ion chelator
What can EGTA do to cadherin?
make hinges fall apart
What do cadherin cytosolic domains anchor?
Proteins linked to the actin cytoskeleton. The proteins are alpha and beta catenin. alpha catenin is folded.
How do cell-cell junctions respond to increased tension?
by strengthening their actin linkages
What protein senses increase in tension?
alpha catenin
What unfolds a domain in alpha catenin?
the tension created by myosin 2 pulling on actin filament. Once domain is unfolded, vinculin can bind to it. Vinculin promotes more actin filament recruiting.
What is adherents junction?
junction of two cadherins one from each cell
How is Beta-catenin a signaling protein?
Disassembly of adherents junctions sends it to the nucleus to alter gene expression.