The Canonical Notch Signaling Pathway: Structural and Biochemical Insights into Shape, Sugar, and Force

Dev Cell. 2017 May 8;41(3):228-241. doi: 10.1016/j.devcel.2017.04.001.

Abstract

The Notch signaling pathway relies on a proteolytic cascade to release its transcriptionally active intracellular domain, on force to unfold a protective domain and permit proteolysis, on extracellular domain glycosylation to tune the forces exerted by endocytosed ligands, and on a motley crew of nuclear proteins, chromatin modifiers, ubiquitin ligases, and a few kinases to regulate activity and half-life. Herein we provide a review of recent molecular insights into how Notch signals are triggered and how cell shape affects these events, and we use the new insights to illuminate a few perplexing observations.

Keywords: Notch signaling; mechanism; review; transcription.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Endocytosis / physiology*
  • Humans
  • Ligands*
  • Membrane Proteins / metabolism*
  • Models, Molecular
  • Receptors, Notch / metabolism*
  • Signal Transduction / physiology*

Substances

  • Ligands
  • Membrane Proteins
  • Receptors, Notch