High impact information on dgn-1

• Basement membrane assembly is a cooperative process in which laminins polymerize through their LN domains and anchor to the cell surface through their G domains; this leads to cell signaling through integrins and dystroglycan (and possibly other receptors) recruited to the adherent laminin [1].
• Unlike vertebrate DG, DGN-1 is not expressed in muscle or required for muscle function. dgn-1 null mutants are viable but sterile owing to severe disorganization of the somatic gonad epithelium, and show defects in vulval and excretory cell epithelia and in motoneuron axon guidance [2].
• Dystroglycan is a novel laminin receptor that links the extracellular matrix and sarcolemma in skeletal muscle [3].
• The specific dystroglycan-Grb2 interaction may play an important role in extracellular matrix-mediated signal transduction and/or cytoskeleton organization in skeletal muscle that may be essential for muscle cell viability [3].
• The laminins can self-assemble, bind to other matrix macromolecules, and have unique and shared cell interactions mediated by integrins, dystroglycan, and other receptors [4].

References