@article {2242,
	title = {Mechanical instability of adherens junctions overrides intrinsic quiescence of hair follicle stem cells.},
	journal = {Dev Cell},
	volume = {56},
	year = {2021},
	month = {2021 Mar 22},
	pages = {761-780.e7},
	abstract = {<p>Vinculin, a mechanotransducer associated with both adherens junctions (AJs) and focal adhesions (FAs), plays a central role in force transmission through cell-cell and cell-substratum contacts. We generated the conditional knockout (cKO) of vinculin in murine skin that results in the loss of bulge stem cell (BuSC) quiescence and promotes continual cycling of the hair follicles. Surprisingly, we find that the AJs in vinculin cKO cells are mechanically weak and impaired in force generation despite increased junctional expression of E-cadherin and α-catenin. Mechanistically, we demonstrate that vinculin functions by keeping α-catenin in a stretched/open conformation, which in turn regulates the retention of YAP1, another potent mechanotransducer and regulator of cell proliferation, at the AJs. Altogether, our data provide mechanistic insights into the hitherto-unexplored regulatory link between the mechanical stability of cell junctions and contact-inhibition-mediated maintenance of BuSC quiescence.</p>
},
	issn = {1878-1551},
	doi = {10.1016/j.devcel.2021.02.020},
	author = {Biswas, Ritusree and Banerjee, Avinanda and Lembo, Sergio and Zhao, Zhihai and Lakshmanan, Vairavan and Lim, Ryan and Le, Shimin and Nakasaki, Manando and Kutyavin, Vassily and Wright, Graham and Palakodeti, Dasaradhi and Ross, Robert S and Jamora, Colin and Vasioukhin, Valeri and Jie, Yan and Raghavan, Srikala}
}
@article {2310,
	title = {Scanning electron microscopy of murine skin ultrathin sections and cultured keratinocytes.},
	journal = {STAR Protoc},
	volume = {2},
	year = {2021},
	month = {2021 Sep 17},
	pages = {100729},
	abstract = {<p>Generating high-quality electron microscopy images of the skin and keratinocytes can be challenging. Here we describe a simple protocol for scanning electron microscopy (SEM) of murine skin. The protocol enables characterization of the ultrastructure of the epidermis, dermis, hair follicles, basement membrane, and cell-cell junctions. We detail the specific steps for sample preparation and highlight the critical need for proper orientation of the sample for ultrathin sectioning. We also describe the isolation and preparation of primary keratinocyte monolayers for SEM. For complete details on the use and execution of this protocol, please refer to Biswas et\&nbsp;al. (2021).</p>
},
	issn = {2666-1667},
	doi = {10.1016/j.xpro.2021.100729},
	author = {Banerjee, Avinanda and Biswas, Ritusree and Lim, Ryan and Pasolli, Hilda Amalia and Raghavan, Srikala}
}
