Journal
JOURNAL OF CELL SCIENCE
Volume 120, Issue 9, Pages 1646-1653Publisher
COMPANY OF BIOLOGISTS LTD
DOI: 10.1242/jcs.003129
Keywords
E-cadherin; LEF1; Smad; TGF-beta; epithelial-m
Categories
Funding
- NCRR NIH HHS [P20 RR018759-035877, RR018759, P20 RR018759] Funding Source: Medline
- NIDCR NIH HHS [R01-DE11142, R01 DE017986] Funding Source: Medline
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Dissociation of medial-edge epithelium (MEE) during palate development is essential for mediating correct craniofacial morphogenesis. This phenomenon is initiated by TGF beta 3 upon adherence of opposing palatal shelves, because loss of E-cadherin causes the MEE seam to break into small epithelial islands. To investigate the molecular mechanisms that cause this E-cadherin loss, we isolated and cultured murine embryonic primary MEE cells from adhered or non-adhered palates. Here, we provide the first evidence that lymphoid enhancer factor 1 (LEF1), when functionally activated by phosphorylated Smad2 (Smad2-P) and Smad4 (rather than beta-catenin), binds with the promoter of the E-cadherin gene to repress its transcription in response to TGF beta 3 signaling. Furthermore, we found that TGF beta 3 signaling stimulates epithelial-mesenchymal transformation (EMT) and cell migration in these cells. LEF1 and Smad4 were found to be necessary for up-regulation of the mesenchymal markers vimentin and fibronectin, independently of beta-catenin. We proved that TGF beta 3 signaling induces EMT in MEE cells by forming activated transcription complexes of Smad2-P, Smad4 and LEF1 that directly inhibit E-cadherin gene expression.
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