Kaiser H W, Ness W, Jungblut I, Briggaman R A, Kreysel H W, O'Keefe E J
Department of Dermatology, University of Bonn, Germany.
J Invest Dermatol. 1993 Feb;100(2):180-5. doi: 10.1111/1523-1747.ep12462801.
Adherens junctions are intercellular and cell-matrix junctions that, like desmosomes and hemidesmosomes, mediate adhesion of cells to each other or to matrix structures. These junctions have been detected recently in cultured human keratinocytes, indicating that they may be of importance in epidermis. To investigate the localization of adherens junctions in normal epidermis, we examined human epidermis, human oral mucosa, and monkey esophagus for the presence of vinculin, a major protein of the intracellular plaques of adherens junctions that is thought to be present in all adherens junctions. Western blot analysis demonstrated vinculin in extracts of epidermis. Immunohistochemistry of vinculin in these tissues displayed two distinct locations for adherens junctions: i) at the dermal-epidermal junction, and ii) in the region of cell-cell contacts in all layers of the epidermis. The location of vinculin in the region of the epidermal-dermal junction is reminiscent of the distribution of vinculin-containing focal contacts in cultured keratinocytes, and the intercellular staining of vinculin in epidermis is consistent with the presence of vinculin in adherens junctions in cultured keratinocytes at sites of cell-cell contact. These results demonstrate that adherens junctions are present in human epidermis, oral mucosa, and monkey esophagus. Vinculin-containing junctions in epidermis may be important in the pathogenesis of skin diseases involving alterations in intercellular integrity.
黏着连接是细胞间和细胞与基质间的连接，与桥粒和半桥粒一样，介导细胞彼此之间或与基质结构的黏附。最近在培养的人角质形成细胞中检测到了这些连接，表明它们可能在表皮中具有重要作用。为了研究黏着连接在正常表皮中的定位，我们检查了人表皮、人口腔黏膜和猴食管中是否存在纽蛋白，纽蛋白是黏着连接细胞内斑块的一种主要蛋白质，被认为存在于所有黏着连接中。蛋白质印迹分析表明表皮提取物中存在纽蛋白。这些组织中纽蛋白的免疫组织化学显示黏着连接有两个不同的位置：i）在真皮-表皮交界处，ii）在表皮各层的细胞-细胞接触区域。纽蛋白在表皮-真皮交界处的位置让人联想到培养的角质形成细胞中含纽蛋白的黏着斑的分布，而表皮中纽蛋白的细胞间染色与培养的角质形成细胞在细胞-细胞接触部位的黏着连接中存在纽蛋白一致。这些结果表明黏着连接存在于人表皮、口腔黏膜和猴食管中。表皮中含纽蛋白的连接可能在涉及细胞间完整性改变皮肤疾病的发病机制中起重要作用。
