title: Principles of E-cadherin supramolecular organization in vivo.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  E-cadherin plays a pivotal role in tissue morphogenesis by forming clusters that support intercellular adhesion and transmit tension. What controls E-cadherin mesoscopic organization in clusters is unclear.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We use 3D superresolution quantitative microscopy in Drosophila embryos to characterize the size distribution of E-cadherin nanometric clusters. The cluster size follows power-law distributions over three orders of magnitude with exponential decay at large cluster sizes. By exploring the predictions of a general theoretical framework including cluster fusion and fission events and recycling of E-cadherin, we identify two distinct active mechanisms setting the cluster-size distribution. Dynamin-dependent endocytosis targets large clusters only, thereby imposing a cutoff size. Moreover, interactions between E-cadherin clusters and actin filaments control the fission in a size-dependent manner.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  E-cadherin clustering depends on key cortical regulators, which provide tunable and local control over E-cadherin organization. Our data provide the foundation for a quantitative understanding of how E-cadherin distribution affects adhesion and might regulate force transmission in vivo.
authors.affiliation: Developmental Biology Institute of Marseilles, UMR 7288 CNRS, Aix-Marseille Université, 13288 Marseille Cedex 9, France.
authors.forename: Binh-An
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Truong Quang
authors.affiliation: Kavli Institute of Theoretical Physics, Santa Barbara, CA 93101, USA; University of California, Department of Physics, Santa Barbara, CA 93101, USA.
authors.forename: Madhav
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mani
authors.affiliation: Developmental Biology Institute of Marseilles, UMR 7288 CNRS, Aix-Marseille Université, 13288 Marseille Cedex 9, France.
authors.forename: Olga
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Markova
authors.affiliation: Developmental Biology Institute of Marseilles, UMR 7288 CNRS, Aix-Marseille Université, 13288 Marseille Cedex 9, France.
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Lecuit
authors.affiliation: Developmental Biology Institute of Marseilles, UMR 7288 CNRS, Aix-Marseille Université, 13288 Marseille Cedex 9, France. Electronic address: pierre-francois.lenne@univ-amu.fr.
authors.forename: Pierre-François
authors.initials: PF
authors.lastname: Lenne
mesh_terms: D000199:Actins / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D015820:Cadherins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism*; D004330:Drosophila / Q000196:embryology; D029721:Drosophila Proteins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism*; D034281:Dynamins / Q000378:metabolism; D004625:Embryo, Nonmammalian; D004705:Endocytosis; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted
chemical_list: D000199:Actins; D015820:Cadherins; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; C501889:shg protein, Drosophila; D034281:Dynamins