Fig. 1

Cell adhesion in normal (a, b) and cancer (c, d) cells. Normal mesenchymal cells show regular actin stress fibers (a, stained with phalloidin) and focal contacts (b, stained with anti-vinculin antibodies). In contrast, cancer cells (a highly motile melanoma cell is shown) often present with a completely disorganized actin cytoskeleton (c) and few focal contacts (d). Vinculin is typically arranged in patches at the periphery of the cell (d) (Confocal micrograph courtesy of Dr. Jörg Hagmann, FMI, Basel)