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J. Cell Biol.,
Volume 141, Number 1, April 6, 1998 209-225
6
4-based Cell Adhesion to the
Intermediate Filament Cytoskeleton: Direct
Interaction between the
4 Subunit and Plectin
at Multiple Molecular Sites
Institute of Biochemistry and Molecular Cell Biology, Vienna Biocenter, 1030 Vienna, Austria
Recent studies with patients suffering from
epidermolysis bullosa simplex associated with muscular
dystrophy and the targeted gene disruption in mice suggested that plectin, a versatile cytoskeletal linker and
intermediate filament-binding protein, may play an essential role in hemidesmosome integrity and stabilization. To define plectin's interactions with hemidesmosomal proteins on the molecular level, we studied its
interaction with the uniquely long cytoplasmic tail domain of the
4 subunit of the basement membrane laminin receptor integrin
6
4 that has been implicated in
connecting the transmembrane integrin complex with
hemidesmosome-anchored cytokeratin filaments. In
vitro binding and in vivo cotransfection assays, using recombinant mutant forms of both proteins, revealed their direct interaction via multiple molecular domains.
Furthermore, we show in vitro self-interaction of integrin
4 cytoplasmic domains, as well as disruption of intermediate filament network arrays and dislocation of
hemidesmosome-associated endogenous plectin upon
ectopic overexpression of this domain in PtK2 and/or
804G cells. The close association of plectin molecules
with hemidesmosomal structures and their apparent
random orientation was indicated by gold immunoelectron microscopy using domain-specific antibodies. Our
data support a model in which plectin stabilizes
hemidesmosomes, via directly interlinking integrin
4
subunits and cytokeratin filaments.
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