Department of Regenerative Medicine and Cell Biology, Medical University of South Carolina, 173 Ashley Avenue, Charleston, SC 29425, USA.
Department of Cancer Biology, Mayo Clinic, 4500 San Pablo Road, Jacksonville, FL 32224, USA.
Curr Opin Cell Biol. 2018 Oct;54:30-36. doi: 10.1016/j.ceb.2018.03.001. Epub 2018 Mar 26.
The adherens junction has been historically considered an essential structural component of epithelial tissues. Although primarily discussed as targets of signaling pathways responsible for cell fate and tissue remodeling, they have also emerged as critical signaling regulators in developmental processes or in disease progression. The recent discovery of a functional localized RNA interference (RNAi) machinery at epithelial adherens junctions revealed a new layer of signaling regulation that is directly associated with the structure itself. This and other findings also indicate that our view of the subcellular localization of RNAi requires revisiting. A number of questions emerge regarding the physiological role and the modes of regulation of the junctional RNAi machinery, pointing towards new directions of investigation.
黏着连接在历史上一直被认为是上皮组织的重要结构组成部分。尽管黏着连接主要被讨论为负责细胞命运和组织重塑的信号通路的靶点，但它们在发育过程或疾病进展中也已成为关键的信号调节因子。最近在上皮黏着连接中发现了一种功能性局部 RNA 干扰 (RNAi) 机制，揭示了与结构本身直接相关的信号调节的新层面。这一发现和其他发现还表明，我们对 RNAi 亚细胞定位的看法需要重新审视。关于连接 RNAi 机制的生理作用和调节方式出现了许多问题，指向新的研究方向。
