title: MicroRNAs regulate tight junction proteins and modulate epithelial/endothelial barrier functions.
abstract: Tightly controlled epithelial and endothelial barriers are a prerequisite for life as these barriers separate multicellular organisms from their environment and serve as first lines of defense. Barriers between neighboring epithelial cells are formed by multiple intercellular junctions including the 'apical junctional complex-AJC' with tight junctions (TJ), adherens junctions (AJ), and desmosomes. TJ consist of tetraspan transmembrane proteins like occludin, various claudins that directly control paracellular permeability, and the 'Junctional Adhesion Molecules' (JAMs). For establishing tight barriers TJ are essential but at the same time have to allow also selective permeability. For this, TJ need to be tightly regulated and controlled. This is organized by a variety of adaptor molecules, i.e., protein kinases, phosphatases and GTPases, which in turn are regulated and fine-tuned involving microRNAs (miRNAs). In this review we summarize available data on the role and targeting of miRNAs in the maintenance of epithelial and/or endothelial barriers.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Infectiology-Center for Molecular Biology of Inflammation (ZMBE); University of Münster ; Münster, Germany.
authors.forename: Christoph
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cichon
authors.affiliation: Institute of Infectiology-Center for Molecular Biology of Inflammation (ZMBE); University of Münster ; Münster, Germany.
authors.forename: Harshana
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sabharwal
authors.affiliation: Institute of Infectiology-Center for Molecular Biology of Inflammation (ZMBE); University of Münster ; Münster, Germany.
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Rüter
authors.affiliation: Institute of Infectiology-Center for Molecular Biology of Inflammation (ZMBE); University of Münster ; Münster, Germany.
authors.forename: M Alexander
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Schmidt
keywords: AJ, Adherens junctions; AJC, apical junctional complex; CDS, coding sequence; IBD, inflammatory bowel disease; JAM, junctional adhesion molecule; ROS, reactive oxygen species; TEM, transmission electron microscopy; TJ, tight junction; epithelial and endothelial barriers; miRNA; miRNA, microRNA; regulation of barrier functions; tight junctions