Convergent extension movements are the main driving force of Xenopus gastrulation. A fine-tuned regulation of cadherin-mediated cell-cell adhesion is thought to be required for this process. Members of the Wnt family of extracellular glycoproteins have been shown to modulate cadherin-mediated cell-cell adhesion, convergent extension movements, and cell differentiation. Here we show that endogen...

Wnt proteins represent a family of secreted, lipid-modified glycoproteins that can activate different intracellular pathways. Upon binding to certain members of the Frizzled family of Wnt receptors some Wnts like Wnt-4, Wnt-5A or Wnt-11 are able to elicit an intracellular release of calcium ions. This calcium signaling acitivity is sufficient to activate calcium sensitive enzymes like protein k...

in biotechnology has been concentrated to review alternative routes for the production of natural compounds. plant cell culture systems are viable alternatives for the production of secondary metabolites that are of commercial importance in food and pharmaceutical industries. however, relatively very few cultures synthesize these compounds over extended periods in amounts comparable to those fo...

The canonical Wnt/β-catenin pathway plays an important role in different developmental processes through the regulation of stem cell functions. In the activation of the canonical Wnt/β-catenin pathway, β-catenin protein is imported into the nucleus and activates transcription of target genes including cyclin D1 and c-myc. Aberrant activation of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway contributes to carcinoge...

Previously, we examined various apoptosis pathways in the AGS gastric cancer cell line using Capsosiphon fulvescens glycoprotein (Cf-GP). In this study, we focused on the downregulation of the Wnt-1 signaling pathway and cell cycle arrest. Upregulation of the Wnt signaling pathway has been observed in various cancer cells. The Wnt signal ligand acts in both canonical and non-canonical pathways....

BACKGROUND/AIM Advanced renal cancer still has a very poor prognosis. In this regard recent investigations demonstrated a constitutive activation of the Wnt signaling pathway in renal cell carcinoma (RCC) thereby promoting an exaggerated cell proliferation. Especially, β-catenin overactivation and the functional loss of endogenous Wnt antagonists are associated with RCC carcinogenesis and progr...

Dysregulation of the Hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway is implicated in development many cancers including BCC. PTCH1 and SMO are critical players Hh GLI1 transcriptional activator through which mediated. Mutation or have been shown to constitutively activate pathway. Active canonical Wnt has also be required for pathway–driven We previously identified a novel mechanism by regulates outcome signa...

Osteosarcoma is a high-grade bone sarcoma with strong invasive ability. However, treatment with traditional chemotherapeutic drugs is limited by low tolerability and side effects. Resveratrol has been reported previously to have selective antitumor effect on various tumor cells while little is known about its effects and underlying mechanism in osteosarcoma biology. In this study, we found that...

Wnt signaling has emerged as a central regulator of skeletal modeling and remodeling. Loss- or gain-of-function mutations in two Wnt co-receptors, Lrp5 and (more recently) Lrp6, have drawn attention to the importance of the Wnt pathway in bone biology. This review summarizes our current understanding of how the Wnt pathway operates on bone and the implications this has for skeletal physiology a...

Drosophila Frizzled-2 (Dfz2) has been identified as a putative fly Wingless (Wg) receptor. Although Dfz2 shows significant homology with Fz, a protein that operates in the mechanisms that establish planar polarity in Drosophila epithelia, any clear evidence for an involvement by Fz in a Wnt signaling pathway has hitherto been absent. Here we describe the planar polarity phenotypes of loss-of-fu...