A secreted LEA-like protein functions as a basement membrane stress protectant

DUR-1, a secreted LEA-like protein in Caenorhabditis elegans, accumulates in basement membranes and promotes tissue integrity and stress survival under desiccation and osmotic challenge.

• Why it matters: Extracellular, tissue-level mechanisms that preserve integrity during environmental stress are poorly understood, especially in multicellular animals where basement membranes must remain functional.
• What they did: DUR-1 is strongly upregulated in the stress-tolerant dauer diapause stage and further upregulated upon desiccation; loss of DUR-1 sensitizes animals to desiccation and osmotic stress, and impairs basement membrane-ensheathed tissue integrity under mechanical stresses from drying or osmotic challenge.
• The result: DUR-1 functions as a basement membrane stress protectant, defining an extracellular protection mechanism and implying that maintaining tissue integrity is critical for stress survival.