| First Author | Lin LH | Year | 1996 |
| Journal | Anat Rec | Volume | 244 |
| Issue | 2 | Pages | 155-64 |
| PubMed ID | 8808390 | Mgi Jnum | J:31716 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:79203 | Doi | 10.1002/(SICI)1097-0185(199602)244:2<155::AID-AR3>3.0.CO;2-0 |
| Citation | Lin LH, et al. (1996) Differential expression of placental (P)-cadherin in sertoli cells and peritubular myoid cells during postnatal development of the mouse testis. Anat Rec 244(2):155-64 |
| abstractText | BACKGROUND: In previous work, RNA transcripts for placental (P)-cadherin, a calcium-dependent cell adhesion molecule, were identified in the rat testis during the first 4 weeks of postnatal development. However, the cells in the testis responsible for P-cadherin expression have not yet been identified. METHODS: We used conventional epifluorescence microscopy to examine P-cadherin immunoreactivity in cryostat sections of mouse testis and scanning laser confocal microscopy to localize P-cadherin and beta-catenin in wholemount preparations of mouse seminiferous tubules. We used fluorescent phalloidin to identify actin filaments. RESULTS: Sertoli cells expressed P-cadherin on postnatal days 1, 3, and 8, but not on any day thereafter. In contrast, peritubular cells did not express P-cadherin on postnatal day 8 and continued expression in adulthood. beta-Catenin was localized near contact areas between peritubular cells on postnatal days 12 and 15. A mature pattern of actin filament organization in peritubular cells appeared on day 15 and coincided with the uniform appearance of P-cadherin and beta-catenin near areas of contact between adjacent peritubular cells. CONCLUSIONS: During postnatal development of the testis, the earlier expression of P-cadherin by Sertoli cells is replaced by the subsequent expression of P-cadherin by peritubular cells. The expression of P-cadherin in peritubular cells is correlated temporally with the expression of beta-catenin and the development of a mature network of actin filaments and is consistent with a role in intercellular adhesion and junction formation. |
