FOCAL ADHESIONS, CONTRACTILITY, AND SIGNALING

作者：Keith Burridge, Magdalena Chrzanowska‐Wodnicka · 发表于：Annual Review of Cell and Developmental Biology · 年份：1996 · DOI：10.1146/annurev.cellbio.12.1.463 · 被引用次数：1981 · 研究领域：Cell Adhesion Molecules Research、Cellular Mechanics and Interactions、Protein Kinase Regulation and GTPase Signaling

Focal adhesions are sites of tight adhesion to the underlying extracellular matrix developed by cells in culture. They provided a structural link between the actin cytoskeleton and the extracellular matrix and are regions of signal transduction that relate to growth control. The assembly of focal adhesions is regulated by the GTP-binding protein Rho. Rho stimulates contractility which, in cells that are tightly adherent to the substrate, generates isometric tension. In turn, this leads to the bundling of actin filaments and the aggregation of integrins (extracellular matrix receptors) in the plane of the membrane. The aggregation of integrins activates the focal adhesion kinase and leads to the assembly of a multicomponent signaling complex.