P60(V-SRC) CAUSES TYROSINE PHOSPHORYLATION AND INACTIVATION OF THE N-CADHERIN CATENIN CELL-ADHESION SYSTEM

Transformation of chick embryonic fibroblasts with Rous sarcoma virus strongly suppresses N-cadherin-mediated cell-cell adhesion, without inhibiting its expression. This suppression is correlated with tyrosine phosphorylation of N-cadherin and catenins, the cadherin-associated proteins, which are known to regulate cadherin function. Experiments with non-myristylation and temperature-sensitive mutants of RSV and with herbimycin A, a potent inhibitor of tyrosine kinases, suggest that both the suppression of cell adhesion and tyrosine phosphorylation of catenins are highly transformation-specific.