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Updated: Oct 20, 2026

Bead Aggregation Assays for the Characterization of Putative Cell Adhesion Molecules
Published on: October 17, 2014
The E-cadherin/epidermal growth factor receptor interaction: a hypothesis of reciprocal and reversible control of
Abstract:
The E-cadherin/catenin complex is a calcium-dependent cell-cell adhesion molecule, whose function is critical to the integrity of the adherens junction and which plays a role in the establishment and maintenance of normal epithelial morphology and differentiation. Loss of E-cadherin-mediated adhesion appears to be a fundamental aspect of the neoplastic phenotype which in some cases appears to be mediated by post-translational modifications (i.e. tyrosine phosphorylation) of its interacting proteins, the catenins which link E-cadherin to the actin cytoskeleton. There is increasing experimental evidence to suggest that epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine phosphorylation may lead to the inactivation of the E-cadherin/catenin complex in cancer cells through its interaction with beta- or gamma-catenin in the cytoskeleton. Modulation of epidermal growth factor receptor activity by pharmacological agents has the potential to regulate a variety of cellular processes including adhesion, differentiation, and proliferation.
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