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Updated: Jul 15, 2026
10:33
Molecular Profiling of the Invasive Tumor Microenvironment in a 3-Dimensional Model of Colorectal Cancer Cells and Ex vivo Fibroblasts
Published on: April 29, 2014
Frizzled7 dictates embryonic morphogenesis: implications for colorectal cancer progression
Elizabeth Vincan1, Rajeeb Kumar Swain, Thomas Brabletz
1Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia. e.vincan@unimelb.edu.au
Summary
Embryonic development pathways, like Wnt signalling, are reactivated in adult intestinal pathologies. This pathway and its receptor, FZD7, are crucial for gut development, homeostasis, and disease.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Biology
- Gastroenterology
- Oncology
Background:
- Biological processes governing embryonic development and organogenesis are implicated in adult pathologies.
- Wnt signalling is vital for mammalian gut embryonic development and adult intestinal homeostasis.
- Aberrant Wnt signalling in the adult intestine is linked to cancer and other diseases.
Purpose of the Study:
- To highlight the parallel between embryonic development and adult pathology using Wnt signalling in the intestinal tract.
- To emphasize the conserved role of Wnt signalling in gut development and homeostasis.
- To investigate the evolutionary conservation of the Wnt receptor FZD7 in gut tissues.
Main Methods:
- Review of basic and clinical research insights.
- Analysis of Wnt signalling pathways in embryonic and adult intestinal contexts.
- Examination of evolutionary conservation of Wnt signalling components, including FZD7.
Main Results:
- Wnt signalling is critical for mammalian gut embryonic development.
- Wnt signalling is essential for maintaining adult intestinal epithelium homeostasis.
- Aberrant Wnt signalling contributes to adult intestinal pathologies, including cancer.
- The Wnt pathway's role in gut development and homeostasis is evolutionarily conserved.
- Wnt receptor FZD7 expression in gut tissue is also evolutionarily conserved.
Conclusions:
- The Wnt signalling pathway plays a fundamental and conserved role in both intestinal embryonic development and adult homeostasis.
- Aberrations in Wnt signalling are implicated in intestinal diseases, underscoring its pathological relevance.
- The evolutionary conservation of Wnt signalling and its receptor FZD7 suggests their integral importance in gut biology and disease.
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