Activins and Nodal are members of the transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) family of growth factors. Their Smad2/3-dependent signalling pathway is well known for its implication in the patterning of the embryo after implantation. Although this pathway is active early on at preimplantation stages, embryonic phenotypes for loss-of-function mutations of prominent components of the pathway are n...

TGF-β signalling plays a key role in the patterning of metazoan body plans and growth. It is widely regarded as a 'module' capable of co-option into novel functions. The TGF-β pathway arose in the Metazoan lineage, and while it is generally regarded as well conserved across evolutionary time, its components have been largely studied in the Ecdysozoa and Deuterostomia. The recent discovery of th...

In the three decades since the discovery of the Wnt1 proto-oncogene in virus-induced mouse mammary tumours, our understanding of the signalling pathways that are regulated by the Wnt proteins has progressively expanded. Wnts are involved in an complex signalling network that governs multiple biological processes and cross-talk with multiple additional signalling cascades, including the Notch, F...

The components of MAPK (mitogen-activated protein kinase) signalling pathways can assemble into complexes that are co-ordinated by regulatory proteins including scaffold proteins. There is increasing evidence that scaffold proteins (i) maintain signalling specificity and facilitate the activation of pathway components, (ii) localize pathway components to particular subcellular sites or to speci...

The HOG1 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway is activated through two-component histidine kinase (HK) signalling. This pathway was first characterized in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a regulator of osmotolerance. The fungus Parastagonospora nodorum is the causal agent of septoria nodorum blotch of wheat. This pathogen uses host-specific effectors in tandem with gene...

Recent insights from diverse fields of basic and clinical research reveal that the biological processes that govern embryonic development and organogenesis are also commonly involved in the pathologies that arise in that organ or tissue in the adult. This striking parallel between embryonic development and pathology is exemplified by Wnt signalling in the intestinal tract. Wnt signalling is cri...

The aim of this study was to reveal the mechanism its wound healing function at molecular level using transcriptome sequencing technology. results showed that EAE mainly upregulated Cyclin A gene through AMPK signalling pathway, activated cell cycle promoted DNA synthesis, accelerated mitosis, and thus proliferation Human immortalized keratinocytes (HaCaT) cells. In addition, analysis downregul...

Mitochondria generate second messengers, such as H2O2, that are involved in the redox regulation of cell signalling and their function is regulated by several cytosolic signalling pathways. IIS [insulin/IGF1 (insulin-like growth factor 1) signalling] in the brain proceeds mainly through the PI3K (phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase)-Akt (protein kinase B) pathway, which is involved in the regulation ...

Adult stem cells play critical roles in the basal maintenance of tissue integrity, also known as homeostasis, and in tissue regeneration following damage. The highly conserved Wnt signalling pathway is a key regulator of stem cell fate. In the gastrointestinal tract, Wnt signalling activation drives homeostasis and damage-induced repair. Additionally, deregulated Wnt signalling is a common hall...

Planar cell polarity (PCP) signalling is a well-conserved developmental pathway regulating cellular orientation during development. An evolutionarily conserved pathway readout is not established and, moreover, it is thought that PCP mediated cellular responses are tissue-specific. A key PCP function in vertebrates is to regulate coordinated centriole/cilia positioning, a function that has not b...