Cadherin-based adhesion regulates mechanical polarization in the actin cortex through Rac1

Abstract

Tension-adhesion interplay is a crucial mechanism in multicellular organisms that determines the tension differential among internal and external interfaces, which in turn, mediates tissue surface tension and cell sorting, morphogenesis and remodeling, and cancer progression. Cadherins are widely believed to be involved, yet key aspects of the process are neither well characterized nor quantified. This study demonstrates the critical role of N-cadherin in driving mechanical polarization throughout the actin cortical network. N-cadherin regulates both tension increase at the cell-medium (external) interface and decrease at the cell-cell (internal) interface, and their quantitative magnitudes, both absolute and relative, strongly depend on the surface density of N-cadherin. Furthermore, the strength of polarization also increases with respect to the number of cell-cell interfaces for cells within a multicellular cluster. The cadherin-actin contractility linkage is mediated by Rac1, which serves as a molecular switch to trigger cortex remodeling and contraction via myosin II. Inhibition of Rac1 activity decreases polarization and leads to reduced coherence in both small clusters and spheroids. These results provide a pathway to reconcile opposing theories for tissue surface tension generation and perspectives in cancer treatment.