A protein scaffold plays matchmaker for chordin.
In this issue, Inomata et al. (2008) report that the scaffold protein Olfactomedin 1 (ONT1) recruits the Tolloid proteases to their substrate Chordin, an antagonist of bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs), during development of the frog embryo. Consequently, ONT1 expression in the organizer of the late gastrula stabilizes the gradient of BMP signaling that is essential for dorsoventral patterning.
Harland
Richard M
RM
Department of Molecular and Cell Biology and Center for Integrative Genomics, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-3200, USA.
D000818:Animals; D019521:Body Patterning; D019485:Bone Morphogenetic Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D004625:Embryo, Nonmammalian / Q000378:metabolism; D016326:Extracellular Matrix Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D006023:Glycoproteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D036341:Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D014981:Xenopus / Q000196:embryology*; D029867:Xenopus Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*
D019485:Bone Morphogenetic Proteins; D016326:Extracellular Matrix Proteins; D006023:Glycoproteins; D036341:Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; D029867:Xenopus Proteins; C081451:olfactomedin; C054234:chordin