by Keyword: Α-catenin
Noordstra, I, Hermoso, MD, Schimmel, L, Bonfim-Melo, A, Currin-Ross, D, Duong, CN, Kalappurakkal, JM, Morris, RG, Vestweber, D, Mayor, S, Gordon, E, Roca-Cusachs, P, Yap, AS, (2023). An E-cadherin-actin clutch translates the mechanical force of cortical flow for cell-cell contact to inhibit epithelial cell locomotion Developmental Cell 58, 1748-+ 
Adherens junctions (AJs) allow cell contact to inhibit epithelial migration yet also permit epithelia to move as coherent sheets. How, then, do cells identify which contacts will inhibit locomotion? Here, we show that in human epithelial cells this arises from the orientation of cortical flows at AJs. When the leader cells from different migrating sheets make head-on contact with one another, they assemble AJs that couple together oppositely directed cortical flows. This applies a tensile signal to the actin-binding domain (ABD) of a-cate-nin, which provides a clutch to promote lateral adhesion growth and inhibit the lamellipodial activity neces-sary for migration. In contrast, AJs found between leader cells in the same migrating sheet have cortical flows aligned in the same direction, and no such mechanical inhibition takes place. Therefore, a-catenin mechano-sensitivity in the clutch between E-cadherin and cortical F-actin allows cells to interpret the direction of motion via cortical flows and signal for contact to inhibit locomotion.
JTD Keywords: Clutch, Contact inhibition of locomotion, Cortical flow, E-cadherin adhesion, Mechanical tension, Α-catenin
