CDH2-Polyclonal Antibodies

, R-, B- and E-cadherins, as well as about ten other members that are found in adherens junctions, a cellular structure near the apical surface of polarized epithelial cells. The cytoplasmic domain of classical cadherins interacts with β-catenin, γ-catenin (also called plakoglobin), and p120 catenin. β-catenin and γ-catenin associate with α-catenin, which links the cadherin-catenin complex to the actin cytoskeleton (1,2). While β- and γ-catenin play structural roles in the junctional complex, p120 regulates cadherin adhesive activity and trafficking (1-4). E-cadherin is considered an active suppressor of invasion and growth of many epithelial cancers (1-3). Recent studies indicate that cancer cells have up-regulated N-cadherin in addition to loss of E-cadherin. This change in cadherin expression is called the "cadherin switch". N-cadherin cooperates with the FGF receptor, leading to overexpression of MMP-9 and cellular invasion (3). In endothelial cells, VE-cadherin signaling, expression, and localization correlate with vascular permeability and tumor angiogenesis (5,6). Expression of P-cadherin, which is normally present in epithelial cells, is also altered in ovarian and other human cancers (7,8).

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