| Scribble (Scrib) was originally identified in a genetic screen in Drosophila along with cell polarity determinants Discs Large (Dlg) and Lethal giant larvae (Lgl). Drosophila mutants homozygous for these genes share similar phenotypes, including the loss of apicobasal cell polarity and neoplastic tissue overgrowth. These phenotypic similarities suggest that these three proteins function in a common pathway important for establishing and maintaining apicobasal polarity in epithelial cells (1,2). Scribble contains many leucine-rich repeats and PDZ domains important for localizing scribble to adherens junctions and basolateral regions of mammalian epithelial cells (3). Scribble reportedly binds β-catenin, APC, E-cadherin and the E6 protein from high-risk virus type of HPV through a short motif important for E6-induced cell transformation (4-8). Overexpression of scribble inhibits transformation of rodent epithelial cells by HPV E6/7 proteins (8). |
