Nanos1 is one of three known mammalian homologs to the Drosophila gene nanos. Nanos1 is an RNA-binding protein containing a zinc-finger motif and is expressed in the developing nervous system and continues in the adult brain. Interestingly, unlike mice deficient in either nanos2 or nanos3, mice lacking the nanos1 gene develop normally with no sign of abnormalities. Recently it has been found that expression of nanos1 mRNA is down-regulated by E-cadherin in a human breast cancer cell line and the amino-terminal domain on Nanos1 interacts with the E-cadherin-binding protein p120ctn. Furthermore, overexpression of Nanos1 in human colorectal DLD1 cancer cells functionally abolished cell-cell adhesion, allowing the cancer cells to develop strong migratory and invasive properties. These results suggest that targeting Nanos1 might prove an effective strategy in the treatment of E-cadherin-negative tumors.