Abstract
CD44 isoforms act as coreceptors for the receptor tyrosine kinases c-Met and VEGFR-2. However, Cd44 knockout mice do not show overt phenotypes, in contrast to Met and Vegfr-2 knockout mice. We hypothesized that CD44 is being compensated for by another factor in Cd44 null mice. Using RNAi technology and blocking experiments with antibodies, peptides, and purified ectodomains, as well as overexpression studies, we identified intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) as a new coreceptor for c-Met in CD44-negative tumor cells and in primary hepatocytes obtained from Cd44 null mice. Most strikingly, after partial hepatectomy, CD44v6-specific antibodies inhibited liver cell proliferation and c-Met activation in wild-type mice, whereas ICAM-1-specific antibodies interfered with liver cell proliferation and c-Met activation in Cd44 knockout mice. These data show that ICAM-1 compensates for CD44v6 as a coreceptor for c-Met in Cd44 null mice. Compensation of proteins by members of the same family has been widely proposed to explain the lack of phenotype of several knockout mice. Our experiments demonstrate the functional substitution of a protein by a heterologous one in a knockout mouse.