title: Plectin: a cytolinker by design.
abstract: Plectin is a cytoskeletal protein of >500 kDa that forms dumbbell-shaped homodimers comprising a central parallel alpha-helical coiled coil rod domain flanked by globular domains, thus providing a molecular backbone ideally suited to mediate the protein's interactions with an array of other cytoskeletal elements. Plectin self-associates and interacts with actin and intermediate filament cytoskeleton networks at opposite ends, and it binds at both ends to the hemidesmosomal transmembrane protein integrin beta-4, and likely to other junctional proteins. The central coiled coil rod domain can form bridges over long stretches and serves as a flexible linker between the structurally diverse N-terminal domain and the highly conserved C-terminal domain. Plectin is also a target of p34cdc2 kinase that regulates its dissociation from intermediate filaments during mitosis.
authors: Institute of Biochemistry and Molecular Cell Biology, University of Vienna, Vienna Biocenter, Austria.
authors: F A
authors: FA
authors: Steinböck
authors: G
authors: G
authors: Wiche
mesh_terms: D008841:Actin Cytoskeleton / Q000378:metabolism; D000199:Actins / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D015703:Antigens, CD / Q000378:metabolism; D002453:Cell Cycle; D006801:Humans; D039663:Integrin beta4; D007381:Intermediate Filament Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D007382:Intermediate Filaments / Q000378:metabolism; D051190:Plectin; D011487:Protein Conformation
chemical_list: D000199:Actins; D015703:Antigens, CD; D039663:Integrin beta4; D007381:Intermediate Filament Proteins; C495332:PLEC protein, human; D051190:Plectin