A unique talin homologue with a villin headpiece-like domain is required for multicellular morphogenesis in Dictyostelium.
Molecules involved in the interaction between the extracellular matrix, cell membrane and cytoskeleton are of central importance in morphogenesis. Talin is a large cytoskeletal protein with a modular structure consisting of an amino-terminal membrane-interacting domain, with sequence similarities to members of the band 4.1 family, and a carboxy-terminal region containing F-actin-binding and vinculin-binding domains [1] [2]. It also interacts with the cytoplasmic tail of beta integrins which, on the external face of the membrane, bind to extracellular matrix proteins [3]. The possible roles of talin in multicellular morphogenesis in development remain largely unexplored. In Dictyostelium, a eukaryotic microorganism capable of multicellular morphogenesis, a talin homologue (TALA) has previously been identified and shown to play an important role in cell-to-substrate adhesion and maintenance of normal elastic properties of the cell [4] [5] [6]. Here, we describe a second talin homologue (TALB) that is required for multicellular morphogenesis in the development of Dictyostelium. Unlike any other talin characterised to date, it contains an additional carboxy-terminal domain homologous to the villin headpiece.
Tsujioka
M
M
Department of Botany, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8502, Japan.
Machesky
L M
LM
Cole
S L
SL
Yahata
K
K
Inouye
K
K
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001665:Binding Sites; D002352:Carrier Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D018076:DNA, Complementary / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D004023:Dictyostelium / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D008840:Microfilament Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D020033:Protein Isoforms / Q000235:genetics; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D016608:Talin / Q000235:genetics*
D002352:Carrier Proteins; D018076:DNA, Complementary; D008840:Microfilament Proteins; D020033:Protein Isoforms; D016608:Talin; C026615:villin