ANKYRIN BINDING-ACTIVITY SHARED BY THE NEUROFASCIN L1/NRCAM FAMILY OFNERVOUS-SYSTEM CELL-ADHESION MOLECULES/

Neurofascin, L1, NrCAM, NgCAM, and neuroglian are membrane-spanning ce ll adhesion molecules with conserved cytoplasmic domains that are beli eved to play important roles in development of the nervous system. Thi s report presents biochemical evidence that the cytoplasmic domains of these molecules associate directly with ankyrins, a family of spectri n-binding proteins located on the cytoplasmic surface of specialized p lasma membrane domains. Rat neurofascin and NrCAM together comprise ov er 0.5% of the membrane protein in adult brain tissue. Linkage of thes e ankyrin-binding cell adhesion molecules to spectrin-based structures may provide a major class of membrane-cytoskeletal connections in adu lt brain as well as earlier stages of development.