TY - JOUR TI - A multi-protein receptor-ligand complex underlies combinatorial dendrite guidance choices in C. elegans AU - Zou, Wei AU - Shen, Ao AU - Dong, Xintong AU - Tugizova, Madina AU - Xiang, Yang K AU - Shen, Kang A2 - Davis, Graeme W VL - 5 PY - 2016 DA - 2016/10/05 SP - e18345 C1 - eLife 2016;5:e18345 DO - 10.7554/eLife.18345 UR - https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.18345 AB - Ligand receptor interactions instruct axon guidance during development. How dendrites are guided to specific targets is less understood. The C. elegans PVD sensory neuron innervates muscle-skin interface with its elaborate dendritic branches. Here, we found that LECT-2, the ortholog of leukocyte cell-derived chemotaxin-2 (LECT2), is secreted from the muscles and required for muscle innervation by PVD. Mosaic analyses showed that LECT-2 acted locally to guide the growth of terminal branches. Ectopic expression of LECT-2 from seam cells is sufficient to redirect the PVD dendrites onto seam cells. LECT-2 functions in a multi-protein receptor-ligand complex that also contains two transmembrane ligands on the skin, SAX-7/L1CAM and MNR-1, and the neuronal transmembrane receptor DMA-1. LECT-2 greatly enhances the binding between SAX-7, MNR-1 and DMA-1. The activation of DMA-1 strictly requires all three ligands, which establishes a combinatorial code to precisely target and pattern dendritic arbors. KW - dendrite guidance KW - ligand-receptor interaction KW - cell-cell adhesion JF - eLife SN - 2050-084X PB - eLife Sciences Publications, Ltd ER -