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Epithelial Cells: Functioning in Junction
Epithelial cells not only form the body's skin and mucous tissues but cover also all surfaces of the various organs, where they fulfil highly specialised tasks as a compound structure. Whether the tissue can fulfil its function depends also on how well and closely epithelial cells are interlinked. MDC scientists around Dr Max Werth, Katharina Walentin and Prof. Dr Kai Schmidt-Ott now have gained new insights into the development of epithelial cells and the links between them. In doing so, they identified a transcription factor (grainyhead-like 2, Grhl2), which regulates the composition of the molecular “bridges” linking adjacent epithelial cells. A dysfunction of this transcription factor in these cells may affect epithelial barrier formation and other cell characteristics and, thereby, contribute to various diseases, including congenital abnormalities of the kidney or the development of hypertension.
