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Updated: Jun 4, 2026

Neural Tube Closure in Mouse Whole Embryo Culture
Published on: October 21, 2011
RACK1 is a novel interaction partner of PTK7 that is required for neural tube closure
Peter Wehner1, Iryna Shnitsar, Henning Urlaub
1Department of Developmental Biochemistry, Center of Molecular Physiology of the Brain, GZMB, University of Goettingen, Justus-von-Liebig-Weg 11, 37077 Goettingen, Germany.
Abstract:
RACK1 is an evolutionarily conserved intracellular adaptor protein that is involved in a wide range of processes including cell adhesion and migration; however, its role in vertebrate development is largely unknown. Here, we identify RACK1 as a novel interaction partner of PTK7, a regulator of planar cell polarity that is necessary for neural tube closure. RACK1 is likewise required for Xenopus neural tube closure. Further, explant assays suggest that PTK7 and RACK1 are required for neural convergent extension. Mechanistically, RACK1 is necessary for the PTK7-mediated membrane localization of Dishevelled (DSH). RACK1 facilitates the PTK7-DSH interaction by recruiting PKCδ1, a known effector of DSH membrane translocation. These data place RACK1 in a novel signaling cascade that translocates DSH to the plasma membrane and regulates vertebrate neural tube closure.
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