Adducin expression in cutaneous and oral lesions: alpha- and beta-adducin transcripts down-regulate with keratinocyte differentiation in stratified epithelia.

Adducin is a heterodimer of alpha- with beta- or gamma-subunits that regulates the assembly of the spectrin-based membrane skeleton in erythrocytes. Although adducin has been identified in various non-erythroid cells and tissues, it has been localized at intercellular junctions only in keratinocytes and epidermis. However, no data are available yet on the regulation of individual adducin genes in differentiating versus hyperproliferating keratinocytes.