E-cadherin

Among the various classes of molecules involved in cell-cell interactions, cadherins form a group of calcium-dependent transmembrane glycoproteins that typically mediate homophilic and homotypic cell-cell adhesion. One of the earliest and most extensively analyzed molecules of the cadherin superfamily is E-cadherin, a cell surface protein preferentially expressed on epithelial cells of a variety of tissues in different species. E-cadherin has a crucial role in many aspects of cell adhesion, epithelial development, and establishment and maintenance of epithelial polarity. Loss of the adhesive function of E-cadherin is a crucial step in the promotion of epithelial cells to a more malignant phenotype, facilitating invasion and metastasis of epithelial tumors. Specifically, protein-truncating germline mutations in CDH1, the gene encoding E-cadherin, confer a high risk of diffuse gastric cancer, with the gene acting as a classic tumor suppressor.