Dynamics and functions of E-cadherin complexes in epithelial cell and tissue morphogenesis

• Published in: Marine life science & technology 2023-11, Vol.5 (4), p.585-601
• Main Authors: Zhang, Na, Häring, Matthias, Wolf, Fred, Großhans, Jörg, Kong, Deqing
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Biodiversity; Biological Techniques; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Fish & Wildlife Biology & Management; Food Microbiology; Freshwater & Marine Ecology; Life Sciences; Review
• ISSN: 2662-1746; 2096-6490; 2662-1746
• DOI: 10.1007/s42995-023-00206-w

Cell–cell adhesion is at the center of structure and dynamics of epithelial tissue. E-cadherin–catenin complexes mediate Ca 2+ -dependent trans- homodimerization and constitute the kernel of adherens junctions. Beyond the basic function of cell–cell adhesion, recent progress sheds light the dynamics and interwind interactions of individual E-cadherin–catenin complex with E-cadherin superclusters, contractile actomyosin and mechanics of the cortex and adhesion. The nanoscale architecture of E-cadherin complexes together with cis- interactions and interactions with cortical actomyosin adjust to junctional tension and mechano-transduction by reinforcement or weakening of specific features of the interactions. Although post-translational modifications such as phosphorylation and glycosylation have been implicated, their role for specific aspects of in E-cadherin function has remained unclear. Here, we provide an overview of the E-cadherin complex in epithelial cell and tissue morphogenesis focusing on nanoscale architectures by super-resolution approaches and post-translational modifications from recent, in particular in vivo, studies. Furthermore, we review the computational modelling in E-cadherin complexes and highlight how computational modelling has contributed to a deeper understanding of the E-cadherin complexes.