Adherens junctions in mammalian development, homeostasis and disease: lessons from mice.
Mice have proven to be a particularly powerful model to study molecular mechanisms of development and disease. The reason for this is the close evolutionary relationship between rodents and humans, similarities in physiological mechanisms in mice and human, and the large number of techniques available to study gene functions in mice. A large number of mice mutations, either germ line, conditional or inducible, have been generated in the past years for adherens junctions components, and the number is still increasing. In this review we will discuss mice models that have contributed to understanding the developmental and physiological role of adherens junctions and their components in mammals and have revealed novel mechanistic aspects of how adherens junctions regulate morphogenesis and tissue homeostasis.
Department of Dermatology, Center for Molecular Medicine, University of Cologne, Room 4A.05, Robert Kochstrasse 21, 50931, Cologne, Germany.
Barbara
B
Boggetti
Carien M
CM
Niessen
D022005:Adherens Junctions / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D004194:Disease; D006706:Homeostasis / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D009024:Morphogenesis / Q000502:physiology*