Free edges in epithelia as cues for motility.
One of the primary functions of any epithelium is to act as a barrier. To maintain integrity, epithelia migrate rapidly to cover wounds, and there is intense interest in understanding how wounds are detected. Numerous soluble factors are present in the wound environment and epithelia can sense the presence of adjacent denuded extracellular matrix. However, the presence of such cues is expected to be highly variable, and here we focus on the presence of edges in the epithelial sheets as a stimulus, since they are universally and continuously present in wounds. Using a novel tissue culture model, free edges in the absence of any other identifiable cues were found to trigger activation of the epidermal growth factor receptor and increase cell motility. Edges bordered by inert physical barriers do not activate the receptor, indicating that activation is related to mechanical factors rather than to specific cell cell interactions.
Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences Research Center, The Eye and Ear Institute, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA. klarlundjk@upmc.edu
Jes K
JK
Klarlund
Ethan R
ER
Block
D000818:Animals; D002450:Cell Communication; D002465:Cell Movement; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004815:Epidermal Growth Factor / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D004847:Epithelial Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D004848:Epithelium / Q000502:physiology; D066246:ErbB Receptors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D005109:Extracellular Matrix / Q000378:metabolism; D015870:Gene Expression; D006801:Humans; D016850:Limbus Corneae / Q000502:physiology; D055595:Mechanical Phenomena; D051379:Mice; D008954:Models, Biological; D015398:Signal Transduction; D014945:Wound Healing / Q000502:physiology*; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000378:metabolism
D004815:Epidermal Growth Factor; D066246:ErbB Receptors