Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Peter AK
PROVIDER: S-EPMC2575773 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Nov
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
Peter Angela K AK Marshall Jamie L JL Crosbie Rachelle H RH
The Journal of cell biology 20081101 3
Mutations in the dystrophin gene cause Duchenne muscular dystrophy and result in the loss of dystrophin and the entire dystrophin-glycoprotein complex (DGC) from the sarcolemma. We show that sarcospan (SSPN), a unique tetraspanin-like component of the DGC, ameliorates muscular dystrophy in dystrophin-deficient mdx mice. SSPN stabilizes the sarcolemma by increasing levels of the utrophin-glycoprotein complex (UGC) at the extrasynaptic membrane to compensate for the loss of dystrophin. Utrophin is ...[more]