High impact information on K-CAM

• Chick B-cadherin and murine E-cadherin also form mixed aggregates, indistinguishable from homophilic aggregates [1].
• B-cadherin- and LCAM-expressing cell lines, however, appear to be completely miscible, forming large mixed aggregates [1].
• To examine the possibility that they might bind to one another in a heterophilic manner, we generated, by cDNA transfection, L-cell lines that express LCAM or B-cadherin [1].
• These results suggest that B-cadherin has important functions in neurogenesis, in at least some epithelia, and in embryogenesis [2].
• In particular, immunohistochemical staining and in situ hybridization localize B-cadherin protein and mRNA to the epithelial lining of the choroid plexus and to cells in specific layers of the optic tectum in chick brain [2].

Biological context of K-CAM

• As has been observed for other cadherins, B-cadherin, when expressed in mouse L929 fibroblasts, confers upon them a calcium-dependent cell aggregation activity [3].
• CONCLUSIONS; These results suggest that while both N- and B-cadherin are expressed during lens cell differentiation, both their patterns of expression as well as their cytoskeletal association differ between epithelial and fiber cells [4].
• PURPOSE: To analyze the dynamics of N- and B-cadherin cell adhesion molecule expression and cytoskeletal interaction during embryonic chick lens development [4].

Anatomical context of K-CAM

• Antibody staining and in situ hybridization reveal that B-cadherin protein and mRNA are found in diverse epithelia derived from each of the three primary germ layers, where their expression is strikingly regulated during differentiation [3].
• A monoclonal antibody to B-cadherin was isolated and used to determine the pattern of expression of B-cadherin in the developing chick embryo [3].
• R- and B-cadherin expression defines subpopulations of glial cells involved in axonal guidance in the optic nerve head of the chicken [5].
• Applying immunofluorescence and confocal laser scanning microscopy, we investigated R- and B-cadherin expression in relation to the glial cell differentiation in the optic nerve head and pecten oculi of developing chicken [5].
• In addition, the B-cadherin-positive population developed into a highly pigmented cell type, which was consistently associated with pecten-type capillaries [5].

Other interactions of K-CAM

• The sequence of the predicted gene product was nearly identical to that of the chicken B-cadherin cDNA, although the distribution of the K-CAM gene transcript differed from that reported for the cadherin [6].
• METHODS: Localization of N- and B-cadherin, F-actin, and connexin 56 were determined by immunohistochemistry of developing lenses or immunocytochemistry of differentiating primary lens cultures [4].

Analytical, diagnostic and therapeutic context of K-CAM

• Molecular cloning and characterization of B-cadherin, a novel chick cadherin [2].
• To address this issue, we selectively lysed both glial subtypes in developing embryos by microinjection of R- and B-cadherin antibodies with complement [5].
• Biochemical analysis of cytoskeletal linkage of N- or B-cadherin was assessed by differential detergent extraction, electrophoresis, and immunoblotting [4].
• As detected immunocytochemically in lens cell cultures, the temporal localization of N-cadherin to cell-cell interfaces precedes that of B-cadherin [4].

References