Vinculin was identified as a component of focal adhesions and adherens junctions nearly 40
years ago. Since that time, remarkable progress has been made in understanding its …

Cells integrate biochemical and mechanical information to function within multicellular
tissue. Within develo** and remodeling tissues, mechanical forces contain instructive …

Classical cadherins are transmembrane proteins at the core of intercellular adhesion
complexes in cohesive metazoan tissues. The extracellular domain of classical cadherins …

Force sensing at cadherin-mediated adhesions is critical for their proper function. α-Catenin,
which links cadherins to actomyosin, has a crucial role in this mechanosensing process. It …

Focal adhesions mediate force transfer between ECM-integrin complexes and the
cytoskeleton. Although vinculin has been implicated in force transmission, few direct …

Multicellularity in animals requires dynamic maintenance of cell–cell contacts. Intercellularly
ligated cadherins recruit numerous proteins to form supramolecular complexes that connect …

The cytosolic protein α-catenin is a postulated force transducer at cadherin complexes [1].
The demonstration of force activation, identification of consequent downstream events in live …

The sha** of a multicellular body and repair of adult tissues require fine-tuning of cell
adhesion, cell mechanics, and intercellular transmission of mechanical load. Adherens …

Epithelial integrity and barrier function must be maintained during the complex cell shape
changes that occur during cytokinesis in vertebrate epithelial tissue. Here, we investigate …

Morphogen gradients instruct cells to pattern tissues. Although the mechanisms by which
morphogens transduce chemical signals have been extensively studied, the roles and …