Ultrastructural anomalies of the desmosomal contacts in monolayer transformed cultures

: The ultrastructure of cell-cell desmosomal contacts and their cytoskeletal components in the cellular monolayer of transformed epithelial cultures is studied. It is suggested that asymmetry of the desmosomal contact formation, the formation of hemidesmosome-like structures on the lateral surface of one of the contacted cells and defects of cytoskeletal desmosomal components are related to transformational changes in the functionally different contacted cells.