Kl. Lutz et Tj. Siahaan, MOLECULAR-STRUCTURE OF THE APICAL JUNCTION COMPLEX AND ITS CONTRIBUTION TO THE PARACELLULAR BARRIER, Journal of pharmaceutical sciences, 86(9), 1997, pp. 977-984
The major focus of this review is on the molecular structure and funct
ions of proteins that are involved in the formation of tight intercell
ular junctions and some methods used to modulate intercellular junctio
ns. Tight junctions are a barricade for paracellular delivery of molec
ules such as peptides and proteins. Understanding the molecular struct
ure and functions of intercellular junction proteins may provide the p
ossibility of systematically designing molecules that can regulate tig
ht junctions. Regulation of proteins involved in the formation of inte
rcellular junctions may open avenues to modulating the porosity of int
ercellular junctions to improve paracellular drug delivery.