Publications by authors named "Douglas W Jimenez"

Article Synopsis
  • Epithelial adherens junctions (AJs) are cell-cell adhesion complexes that not only respond to tissue mechanics but also impact the extracellular matrix (ECM).
  • Researchers discovered that the AJ component PLEKHA7 controls ECM remodeling by regulating key components MMP1 and LOX through specific miRNAs in colon epithelial cells.
  • When PLEKHA7 is depleted, cells experience altered ECM remodeling, increased migration and invasion, and abnormal colony formations in stiffer environments, which may relate to disease processes like fibrosis and cancer.
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Adherens junctions are cadherin-based structures critical for cellular architecture. E-cadherin junctions in mature epithelial cell monolayers tether to an apical actomyosin ring to form the zonula adherens (ZA). We have previously shown that the adherens junction protein PLEKHA7 associates with and regulates the function of the core RNA interference (RNAi) component AGO2 specifically at the ZA.

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