intercellular junctions


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in·ter·cel·lu·lar junc·tions

specializations of the cellular margins that contribute to the adhesion or allow for communication between cells; they include the macula adherens (desmosome), zonula adherens, zonula occludens, and nexus (gap junction).
Farlex Partner Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012

intercellular junctions

The microscopic space between cells. These spaces are important in assisting the transfer of small molecules across capillary walls. These junctions may be widened by chemical or physical factors and are acted on by chemical mediators of inflammation to increase vascular permeability.
See also: intercellular
Medical Dictionary, © 2009 Farlex and Partners
References in periodicals archive ?
coli was accompanied by an increase in monolayer permeability (seen as a decrease in the TEER), we suggest that the cytotoxic factor secreted by SEPEC 15 facilitates its passage through the endothelial barrier by a paracellular pathway following alterations in the functional intactness of the intercellular junctions.
Treponema pallidum invades intercellular junctions of endothelial cell monolayers.
[sup][25] In present study, a subset of interstitial cells with ultrastructure characteristics enabling these cells to be regarded as TCs (see in detail: http://www.telocytes.com/ ), was usually located in tunica adventitia of aorta, not in tunica media, and no direct intercellular junctions were found between them and SMCs.
The cells lose their connections to the basal lamina and perhaps to each other, since we found no intercellular junctions. On the other hand, the enterocytes obviously retain polarity, as their apical regions with microvilli are directed toward the interior of the aggregation (Fig.
In the early stages of restoration, on days 1-2 after autotomy, we found no intercellular junctions between the cells of the stomach remnant.
Positivity was defined as distinct, condensed, continuous immunoreactivity localized to the intercellular junctions of keratinocytes, in essentially the same pattern as that seen in immunofluorescence studies.
In pemphigus vulgaris cases, the immunoreactivity for IgG4 was most condensed to the intercellular junctions of suprabasal keratinocytes, consistent with the known location of desmoglein 3 (Figure 1, A).
It is worth noting that although the coelothelial cells have lost their differentiated phenotype, they remain connected to one another via typical intercellular junctions. Moreover, dividing cells are also connected to their neighbors with intercellular junctions and retain SLSs or short bundles of tonofilaments in their cytoplasm (Fig.
Ultrastructural examination reveals epithelial cells joined by intercellular junctions, including desmosomes and junctional complexes, with lumen formation.
Ultrastructurally, medium-sized cells were identified in a cohesive pattern, but no well-defined intercellular junctions were seen (Figure 2, C).
Although ultrastructural features of the tumor favored lymphoma, one had to bear in mind that a third of adrenal cortical carcinomas do not show convincing evidence of steroid-cell differentiation, their amount of intracytoplasmic lipid can be scanty, and their intercellular junctions can be sparse.[2] Additional immunostaining that revealed positivity for CD20 and light chain [Kappa] and demonstration of monoclonal immunoglobulin heavy chain gene rearrangement helped us to establish the diagnosis of lymphoma with certainty.
Intercellular junctions were seen, but well-formed desmosomes were not present.