Plakoglobin is a major component of both desmosomes and adherens junctions. At these sites it binds to the cytoplasmic domains of cadherin cell-cell adhesion proteins and regulates their adhesive and cytoskeletal binding functions. Plakoglobin also forms distinct cytosolic protein complexes that function in pathways of tumor suppression and cell fate determination. Recent studies in Xenopus suggest that cadherins inhibit the signaling functions of plakoglobin presumably by sequestering this protein at the membrane and depleting its cytosolic pool. To understand the reciprocal regulation between desmosomal cadherins (desmoglein and desmocollin) and plakoglobin, we have sought to identify the binding domains involved in the formation of these protein complexes. Plakoglobin comprises 13 central repeats flanked by amino-terminal and carboxyl-terminal domains. Our results show that repeats 1-4 are involved in binding desmoglein-1. In contrast, the interaction of plakoglobin with desmocollin-1a is sensitive to deletion of either end of the central repeat domain. The binding sites for two adherens junction components, -catenin and classical cadherins, overlap these sites. Competition among these proteins for binding sites on plakoglobin may therefore account for the distinct composition of adherens junctions and desmosomes.

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