How cells communicate to move together as a group
Two cell membrane proteins, Fat2 and Lar, trigger leading and trailing edge movements during epithelial migration
A new signaling system has been discovered that epithelial cells use to
coordinate their individual movements and efficiently move tissues,
report scientists.
"When an individual cell needs to move somewhere, it manages just fine on
its own. It extends protrusions from its leading edge and retracts the
trailing edge to scoot itself along, without having to worry about what
the other cells around it are doing. But when cells are joined together
in a sheet of tissue, or epithelium, they have to coordinate their
movements with their neighbors. It's like walking by yourself versus
navigating a crowded room. To push through the crowd, you have to
communicate with others by talking ("Pardon me") or tapping them on the
shoulder. Cells do the same thing, but instead of verbal cues and hand
gestures, they use proteins to signal to each other."
