The C. elegans MAGI-1 protein is a novel component of cell junctions that is required for junctional compartmentalization

Cell junctions are essential to maintain polarity and tissue integrity. Epithelial cell junctions are composed of distinct sub-compartments that together ensure the strong adhesion between neighboring cells. In Caenorhabditis elegans epithelia, the apical junction (CeAJ) forms a single electron-dense structure, but at the molecular level it is composed of two sub-compartments that function redundantly and localize independently as two distinct but adjacent circumferential rings on the lateral plasma membrane. While investigating the role of the multi PDZ-domain containing protein MAGI-1 during C. elegans epidermal morphogenesis, we found that MAGI-1 localizes apical to both the Cadherin/Catenin (CCC) and AJM-1/DLG-1 (DAC) containing sub-domains. Removal of MAGI-1 function causes a loss of junctional compartmentalization along the lateral membrane and reduces the overall robustness of cell-cell adhesion mediated by either type of cell junctions. Our results suggest that MAGI-1 functions as an “organizer” that ensures the correct segregation of different cell adhesion complexes into distinct domains along the lateral plasma membrane. Thus, the formation of stable junctions requires the proper distribution of the CCC and DAC adhesion protein complexes along the lateral plasma membrane.