title: Cell adhesion: a general appraisal.
abstract: Most data on cell adhesion relate to in vitro conditions; for this reason the subject of this review is adhesion of cells to plane inorganic substrata. Adhesion is conceived of as a process requiring energy and comprising distinct steps, most notably the secretion of attachment proteins, the build-up of attachment sites, and the attachment site--induced organization of the cytoskeleton. The grip and stick concept (Rees et al. 1977) is a very adequate interpretation of this course of events. Agents and functions involved in the stages of adhesions are briefly outlined and a few possible extrapolations to cell adhesion in vivo are indicated.
mesh_terms: D002448:Cell Adhesion; D002450:Cell Communication; D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000378:metabolism; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D005353:Fibronectins / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D010973:Platelet Adhesiveness; D011554:Pseudopodia / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D005353:Fibronectins