Tight Junctions, Second Edition

As the first detailed overview of the subject, Tight Junctions brought together diverse perspectives from leading investigators to provide a multidisciplinary overview of the field. Since its publication in 1992, there has been an explosion of information about tight junctions, particularly in the area of molecular structure, cell and molecular biology, genetics and physiology. The field has advanced so fast and so far that it influences many areas of biology and now has practical implications for pharmacology of drug delivery and understanding a wide range of diseases altering epithelial permeability. "As the first detailed overview of the subject, Tight Junctions brought together diverse perspectives from leading investigators to provide a multidisciplinary overview of the field. Since its publication in 1992, there has been an explosion of information about tight junctions, particularly in the area of molecular structure, cell and molecular biology, genetics, and physiology. The field has advanced so fast and so far that it influences many areas of biology and now has practical implications for understanding a wide range of diseases altering epithelial permeability. This Second Edition provides every relevant aspect of tight junctions, from basic, to clinical, to experimental methods and their interpretation." Providing a multi-disciplinary overview of the field, this book covers the major aspects of tight junctions, representing the basic, clinical, and experimental approaches to the subject. It present research on new transmember proteins, eight cytoplasmic plaque proteins, and various signal proteins. It also describes the molecular structure and biol The ability of transporting epithelia to act as diffusion barriers between compartments with different composition and to withstand steep chemical and electrical gradients requires a seal between the cells (Figures 1.1 and 1.2); otherwise, these gradients would dissipate through the intercellular space.