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Updated: Aug 19, 2026

Induction and Analysis of Epithelial to Mesenchymal Transition
Published on: August 27, 2013
Cadherin switching: essential for behavioral but not morphological changes during an epithelium-to-mesenchyme
Masato Maeda1, Keith R Johnson, Margaret J Wheelock
1Department of Oral Biology (College of Dentistry), University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198-7696, USA.
Abstract:
Epithelium-to-mesenchyme transitions (EMTs) are characterized by morphological and behavioral changes in cells. During an EMT, E-cadherin is downregulated while N-cadherin is upregulated. The goal of this study was to understand the role cadherin switching plays in EMT using a classical model system: transforming growth factor beta1 (TGF-beta1)-mediated EMT in mammary epithelial cells. We showed that stress fibers and focal adhesions are increased, and cell-cell junctions are decreased in response to TGF-beta1. Moreover, these changes were reversible upon removal of TGF-beta1. Downregulation of E-cadherin and upregulation of N-cadherin were both transcriptional. Neither experimental knockdown nor experimental overexpression of N-cadherin interfered with the morphological changes. In addition, the morphological changes associated with EMT preceded the downregulation of E-cadherin. Interestingly, TGF-beta1-induced motility in N-cadherin-knockdown cells was significantly reduced. Together, these data suggest that cadherin switching is necessary for increased motility but is not required for the morphological changes that accompany EMT.
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