Mutations of phosphorylation sites in desmoglein and desmocollin produce slight increases in desmosomal hyperadhesion. (a) and (b) show conserved predicted phosphorylation site (in red) in the cytoplasmic domains of desmogleins and (c) shows similar sites in desmocollins. These were mutated to alanine and the mutant proteins expressed in MDCK cells. The effects on desmosomal adhesiveness are described in the text. (d) shows stick models of the desmosomal cadherins desmocollin 2 (Dsc2) and desmoglein 2 (Dsg2). Sites S810 and S814 are located towards the C-terminal end of the ICS (intracellular cadherin-specific) region of Dsg2, S866 towards the C-terminal end of the IPL (intracellular proline-rich) region, and S1051 in the sixth repeat of the specific repeat unit domain (RUD). Sites S729, S733, and S738 are towards the C-terminal end of the ICS region of Dsc2a but are absent from the shorter C-terminal region of Dsc2b because alternative splicing truncates this region. (d) is reproduced from the study by Garrod and Chidgey in [1].
