An acidic extracellular pH induces Src kinase-dependent loss of beta-catenin from the adherens junction
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Updated: Jul 5, 2026

An Immunofluorescent Method for Characterization of Barrett’s Esophagus Cells
Published on: July 20, 2014
Kuo-Hsin Chen1, Po-Yuan Tung, Jiahn-Chun Wu
1Far Eastern Memorial Hospital, Department of Surgery and Division of General Surgery, Taipei 220, Taiwan.
Abstract:
Little attention has been paid to the role of adherens junctions (AJs) in acidic extracellular pH (pHe)-induced cell invasion. Incubation of HepG2 cells in acidic medium (pH 6.6) induced cell dispersion from tight cell clusters, and this change was accompanied by downregulation of beta-catenin at cell junctions and a rapid activation of c-Src. Pretreatment with PP2 prevented the acidic pH-induced downregulation of beta-catenin at AJ and in the membrane fractions. The acidic pHe-induced c-Src activation increased tyrosine phosphorylation of beta-catenin and decreased the amount of beta-catenin-associated E-cadherin. The depletion of membrane-bound beta-catenin coincided with enhanced cell migration and invasion, and this acidic pHe-increased cell migration and invasion was prevented by PP2. In conclusion, this study characterizes a novel signaling pathway responsible for acidic microenvironment-promoted migration and invasive behaviors of cancer cells.
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