Cell Junctions and Cell Adhesion Vocabulary

Flashcards on Cell Junctions and Cell Adhesion

Tight Junction

Seals the gap between epithelial cells.

Adherens Junction

Connects actin filament bundle in one cell with that in the next cell.

Desmosome

Connects intermediate filaments in one cell to those in the next cell.

Gap Junction

Allows the passage of small water-soluble molecules from cell to cell.

Actin-linked cell-matrix junction

Anchors actin filaments in cell to extracellular matrix.

Hemidesmosome

Anchors intermediate filaments in a cell to extracellular matrix.

Adherens junctions

Cell-cell.

Desmosomes

Cell-cell. Strength, durability, signaling.

Hemidesmosomes

Cell-matrix Shape, rigidity, signaling.

Focal, fibrillar, and 3-D adhesions

Cell-matrix Shape, signaling, force transmission, cell movement.

Tight junctions

Cell-cell Controlling solute flow, signaling.

Gap junctions

Cell-cell Communication, small-molecule transport between cells.

Plasmodesmata

Cell-cell Communication, molecule transport between cells.

Cell Adhesion Molecules (CAM)

Proteins on the cell surface involved in cell-cell interaction.

Cadherins

A class of calcium-dependent adhesion molecules primarily composing adherens junctions.

Adherens Junctions and Desmosomes

Adhesive structures that maintain the physical integrity of cells within tissues.

Adherens junctions

A type of cell-cell adhesion structure where the transmembrane protein cadherin indirectly connects to the actin cytoskeleton within the cell.

Desmosomes

Provide mechanical strength, allowing cells and tissues to maintain their integrity under high stress.

Tight Junctions

Act as selective permeation barriers, separating the tissue penetrating fluid on their basal side from the fluid with a different chemical composition on their apical side.

Gap Junctions

Links that connect neighboring cell cytoplasms.

Selectins

Cell surface carbohydrate-binding proteins (lectins) that mediate a variety of transient cell-cell adhesion interactions in the bloodstream.

Integrins

The main cell surface receptors responsible for the attachment of cells to the ECM.