Analysis of the effects of loss of E-cadherin and cell adhesion on human mammary epithelial cells

Loss of the epithelial adhesion molecule E-cadherin is thought to enable metastasis by disrupting intercellular contacts - an early step in metastatic dissemination. To further investigate the molecular basis of this notion, we use two methods to inhibit E-cadherin function that distinguish between E-cadherin's cell-cell adhesion and intracellular signaling functions. While the disruption of cell-cell contacts alone does not enable metastasis, the loss of E-cadherin protein does, through induction of an epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition, invasiveness and anoikis-resistance. We find the E-cadherin binding partner beta-catenin to be necessary but not sufficient for induction of these phenotypes. In addition, gene expression analysis shows that E-cadherin loss results in the induction of multiple transcription factors, at least one of which, Twist, is necessary for E-cadherin loss-induced metastasis. These findings indicate that E-cadherin loss in tumors contributes to metastatic dissemination by inducing wide-ranging transcriptional and functional changes.

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Onder TT, Gupta PB, Mani SA, Yang J, Lander ES, Weinberg RA