Analysis of the p120 knockdown cells by immunofluorescence revealed near complete loss of junctional E-cadherin, loss of α- and β-catenins, and loss of cell–cell adhesion (Fig. 1 d). It is noteworthy that other adhesion systems (e.g., desmosomes) cannot compensate for loss of the core components of the adherens junction. These observations reveal that p120 is essential for adhesion and suggest a core function for p120 in regulating cadherin turnover.
