Organization of multiprotein complexes at cell–cell junctions

The formation of stable cell–cell contacts is required for the generation of barrier-forming sheets of epithelial and endothelial cells. During various physiological processes like tissue development, wound healing or tumorigenesis, cellular junctions are reorganized to allow the release or the incorporation of individual cells. Cell–cell contact formation is regulated by multiprotein complexes which are localized at specific structures along the lateral cell junctions like the tight junctions and adherens junctions and which are targeted to these site through their association with cell adhesion molecules. Recent evidence indicates that several major protein complexes exist which have distinct functions during junction formation. However, this evidence also indicates that their composition is dynamic and subject to changes depending on the state of junction maturation. Thus, cell–cell contact formation and integrity is regulated by a complex network of protein complexes. Imbalancing this network by oncogenic proteins or pathogens results in barrier breakdown and eventually in cancer. Here, I will review the molecular organization of the major multiprotein complexes at junctions of epithelial cells and discuss their function in cell–cell contact formation and maintenance

Antecedents, manifestations, and consequences of belief in mind-body dualism

In this chapter, we will discuss the cognitive and perceptual underpinnings, manifestations, and downstream consequences of common-sense belief in mind–body dualism. Reviewing literature from developmental, social, and cognitive psychology, as well as from experimental philosophy, we will propose a model for dualistic belief (self- and other-oriented) that incorporates both explicit and intuitive beliefs, their relation to one another, and the processes contributing to their respective formation, particularly mental-state inference and bodily self-awareness. We will further discuss different manifestations of dualistic beliefs with a focus on religious belief in souls, an afterlife, or animistic spirits. Finally, the last section of this chapter will discuss practical consequences of dualistic beliefs, focusing on their relation to health behavior, dissociative disorders, lay belief in free will, and processes related to the perceived inaccessibility of minds