Cells bind to and communicate with the extracellular matrix via transmembrane integrins, enabling cells to respond to changes in their environment. To increase integrins’ affinity for ligand, the cell induces a process called “activation.” The details of how activation occurs, however, have been a mystery. Do integrins need to cluster within the membrane, or can they be directly activated by the cytoskeletal protein talin, without any clustering? Martin Humphries of the University of Manchester and F1000 Faculty Member in Cell Biology reviewed a recent paper that employed a clever tool to finally settle the debate. (J Cell Biol 2010 188:157–73, 2010).
Integrin Signaling at a Crossroads
TS: What is integrin activation?
MH: Integrins are the key receptors for the structural proteins outside of the cell. They’re there to transfer information from the immediate environment of the cell into the cytoplasm and ultimately the nucleus, to ...
