Integrins αvβ5 and αvβ3 promote latent TGF-β1 activation by human cardiac fibroblast contraction.

Aims: Pathological tissue remodelling by myofibroblast contraction is a hallmark of cardiac fibrosis. Myofibroblasts differentiate from cardiac fibroblasts under the action of transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1), which is secreted into the extracellular matrix as a large latent complex. Integrin-mediated traction forces activate TGF-β1 by inducing a conformational change in the latent complex.

Induction of phenotype modifying cytokines by FERMT1 mutations.

Kindler syndrome (KS) is a progressive skin disorder caused by FERMT1 mutations. Early in life, KS manifests as a mechanobullous disease reflecting diminished cell adhesion, but the mechanisms of its later phenotypic features, progressive poikiloderma, and mucocutaneous fibrosis, remain elusive. The FERMT1 gene product and KS protein, kindlin-1, is an epithelial-specific phosphoprotein involved in integrin beta-1 activation, without an obvious link to dermal connective tissue.

Kindlin-1 Is required for RhoGTPase-mediated lamellipodia formation in keratinocytes.

Kindlin-1 is an epithelial-specific member of the novel kindlin protein family, which are regulators of integrin functions. Mutations in the gene that encodes Kindlin-1, FERMT1 (KIND1), cause the Kindler syndrome (KS), a human disorder characterized by mucocutaneous fragility, progressive skin atrophy, ulcerative colitis, photosensitivity, and propensity to skin cancer. Our previous studies indicated that loss of kindlin-1 resulted in abnormalities associated with integrin functions, such as adhesion, proliferation, polarization, and motility of epidermal cells.

Shedding of collagen XXIII is mediated by furin and depends on the plasma membrane microenvironment.

Collagen XXIII belongs to the class of type II orientated transmembrane collagens. A common feature of these proteins is the presence of two forms of the molecule: a membrane-bound form and a shed form. Here we demonstrate that, in mouse lung, collagen XXIII is found predominantly as the full-length form, whereas in brain, it is present mostly as the shed form, suggesting that shedding is tissue-specific and tissue-regulated.

Extracellular phosphorylation of collagen XVII by ecto-casein kinase 2 inhibits ectodomain shedding.

Ecto-phosphorylation is emerging as an important mechanism to regulate cellular ligand interactions and signal transduction. Here we show that extracellular phosphorylation of the cell surface receptor collagen XVII regulates shedding of its ectodomain. Collagen XVII, a member of the novel family of collagenous transmembrane proteins and component of the hemidesmosomes, mediates adhesion of the epidermis to the dermis in the skin.

Shedding of collagen XVII ectodomain depends on plasma membrane microenvironment.

Collagen XVII, a hemidesmosomal component, mediates the adhesion of epidermal keratinocytes to the underlying basement membrane. It exists as a full-length transmembrane protein and a soluble ectodomain that is proteolytically released from the cell surface by sheddases of a disintegrin and metalloproteinase (ADAM) family; TACE, the tumor necrosis factor-alpha-converting enzyme, is the major physiological proteinase. Because both collagen XVII and the ADAMs are transmembrane proteins, their plasma membrane microenvironment can influence shedding.