Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
Aix Marseille University, INSERM, CNRS, CIML, Turing Centre for Living Systems, 13009 Marseille, France.
Genetics. 2024 Aug 7;227(4). doi: 10.1093/genetics/iyae072.
Apical extracellular matrices (aECMs) coat the exposed surfaces of animal bodies to shape tissues, influence social interactions, and protect against pathogens and other environmental challenges. In the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, collagenous cuticle and zona pellucida protein-rich precuticle aECMs alternately coat external epithelia across the molt cycle and play many important roles in the worm's development, behavior, and physiology. Both these types of aECMs contain many matrix proteins related to those in vertebrates, as well as some that are nematode-specific. Extensive differences observed among tissues and life stages demonstrate that aECMs are a major feature of epithelial cell identity. In addition to forming discrete layers, some cuticle components assemble into complex substructures such as ridges, furrows, and nanoscale pillars. The epidermis and cuticle are mechanically linked, allowing the epidermis to sense cuticle damage and induce protective innate immune and stress responses. The C. elegans model, with its optical transparency, facilitates the study of aECM cell biology and structure/function relationships and all the myriad ways by which aECM can influence an organism.
顶端细胞外基质（aECM）覆盖动物体表，塑造组织、影响社交互动、抵御病原体和其他环境挑战。在秀丽隐杆线虫中，富含胶原蛋白的角质层和透明质酸蛋白的前角质层 aECM 在外皮上皮细胞的蜕皮周期中交替覆盖，在蠕虫的发育、行为和生理中发挥着许多重要作用。这两种类型的 aECM 都含有许多与脊椎动物相关的基质蛋白，以及一些线虫特异性的蛋白。在组织和生命阶段之间观察到的广泛差异表明，aECM 是上皮细胞身份的主要特征。除了形成离散的层外，一些角质层成分还组装成复杂的亚结构，如脊、沟和纳米级支柱。表皮和角质层机械相连，使表皮能够感知角质层损伤，并诱导保护性先天免疫和应激反应。秀丽隐杆线虫模型具有光学透明性，便于研究 aECM 的细胞生物学和结构/功能关系，以及 aECM 可以影响生物体的所有方式。
