Department of Biology, Trinity Western University, Langley, BC, Canada.
Cell Adh Migr. 2009 Oct-Dec;3(4):342-6. doi: 10.4161/cam.3.4.9451. Epub 2009 Oct 3.
Changes in cell shape are associated with a variety of processes including cell migration, axon outgrowth, cell division and vesicle trafficking. C. elegans UNC-53 and its vertebrate homologs, the Navigators, are required for the migration of cells and the outgrowth of neuronal processes. The identification of novel molecular interactions and live imaging studies have revealed that UNC-53/NAVs are signal transducers associated with actin filaments, microtubules and intermediate filaments. In addition to modulating cytoskeletal dynamics at the leading edge of migrating or outgrowing cells, both UNC-53 and the navigators are expressed in adult cells, conspicuously those with specialized roles in endocytosis or secretion. Collectively, these results suggest that UNC-53/NAVs may be a central regulator of cytoskeletal dynamics, responsible for integrating signaling cues to multiple components of the cytoskeleton to coordinate rearrangement during cell outgrowth or trafficking.
细胞形状的变化与多种过程相关，包括细胞迁移、轴突生长、细胞分裂和囊泡运输。秀丽隐杆线虫 UNC-53 及其脊椎动物同源物，导航蛋白，对于细胞迁移和神经元突起的生长是必需的。新的分子相互作用的鉴定和活细胞成像研究表明，UNC-53/导航蛋白是与肌动蛋白丝、微管和中间丝相关的信号转导蛋白。除了调节迁移或生长的细胞前缘的细胞骨架动力学之外，UNC-53 和导航蛋白都在成年细胞中表达，特别是在胞吞或分泌中具有特殊作用的细胞中。总的来说，这些结果表明 UNC-53/导航蛋白可能是细胞骨架动力学的中央调节剂，负责整合信号提示到细胞骨架的多个成分，以协调细胞生长或运输过程中的重排。
