biosights: May 13, 2013

Ventral lamellipodia plug the gaps

When leukocytes enter or exit the blood stream, they leave small wounds both in and between the vascular endothelial cells, which must be quickly repaired so that the endothelium can maintain its barrier function. Martinelli et al. reveal that wounding causes a loss of tension in endothelial cells, inducing the formation of ventral lamellipodia that close the holes left by transmigrating leukocytes. This biosights episode presents the paper by Martinelli et al. from the April 29, 2013, issue of The Journal of Cell Biology and includes an interview with authors Roberta Martinelli and Christopher Carman (Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA). Produced by Caitlin Sedwick and Ben Short. See the associated paper in JCB for details on the funding provided to support this original research.

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