BACKGROUND Wnt signals are important for embryonic stem cells renewal, growth and differentiation. Although 19 Wnt, 10 Frizzled genes have been identified in mammals, their expression patterns in stem cells were largely unknown. RESULTS We conducted RNA expression profiling for the Wnt ligands, their cellular receptors "Frizzleds" and co-receptors LRP5/6 in human embryonic stem cells (H7), hu...

Wnt signaling is dysregulated in many cancers and is therefore an attractive therapeutic target. The focus of drug development has recently shifted away from downstream inhibitors of β-catenin. Active inhibitors of Wnt secretion and Wnt/receptor interactions have been developed that are now entering clinical trials. Such agents include inhibitors of Wnt secretion, as well as recombinant protein...

WNT signaling pathway is implicated in carcinogenesis, embryogenesis and organogenesis [4]. WNTs are a family of secreted-type glycoproteins with 22∼24 conserved cysteine residues. WNT signals are transduced through seven-transmembrane-type WNT receptors encoded by Frizzled (FZD) genes to the β-catenin TCF pathway, the JNK pathway, or the Ca2+-releasing pathway. Gain-of-function mutations of po...

Wnt ligands comprise a large family of secreted glycoproteins that control a variety of developmental processes including cell polarization in diverse organisms. Through various receptors present on receiving cells, Wnts initiate intracellular signaling cascades resulting in changes in gene transcription or cytoskeleton reorganization. Recently, several lines of evidence have suggested the role...

Members of the low density lipoprotein receptor family (LDLR), LRP5/6, were shown to interact with the Frizzled (Fz) receptors and to function as Wnt coreceptors. Here we show that mLRP4T100, a minireceptor of LRP1, another member of the LDLR family, interacts with the human Fz-1 (HFz1), previously shown to serve as a receptor transmitting the canonical Wnt-3a-induced signaling cascade. However...

During development, cell polarization is often coordinated to harmonize tissue patterning and morphogenesis. However, how extrinsic signals synchronize cell polarization is not understood. In Caenorhabditis elegans, most mitotic cells are polarized along the anterior-posterior axis and divide asymmetrically. Although this process is regulated by a Wnt-signaling pathway, Wnts functioning in cell...

background: wnt molecules play a key role in growth, proliferation and development of some embryonic and adult organs as well as hematopoietic stem cells. wnt signaling pathways are aberrantly activated in many tumor types, including solid tumors and hematologic malignancies. objective: to investigate the expression profile of a large number of wnt genes in leukemic cells from iranian patients ...

Classical G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) and canonical Wnt pathways were believed to use distinct signaling pathways. However, recent studies have shown that these two pathways interact each other by sharing several intermediate signaling components. Recent in vivo studies showed that antipsychotic drugs, which block dopamine D2-like receptors, increase the cellular levels of downstream si...

Members of the Wnt family of secreted glyco-lipo-proteins affect intrathymic T-cell development and are abundantly secreted by thymic epithelial cells (TECs) that create the specific microenvironment for thymocytes to develop into mature T-cells. During ageing, Wnt expression declines allowing adipoid involution of the thymic epithelium leading to reduced naïve T-cell output. The protein kinase...

The Wnt signaling network, which is composed of Wnt ligands, receptors, antagonists, and intracellular signaling molecules, has emerged as a powerful regulator of cell fate, proliferation, and function in multicellular organisms. Over the past two decades, the critical role of Wnt signaling in embryonic cartilage and bone development has been well established, and much has been learnt regarding...