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Related Concept Videos

Canonical Wnt Signaling Pathway02:54

Canonical Wnt Signaling Pathway

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The gene encoding the main signaling molecules of the Wnt signaling pathways (the Wnt proteins) was discovered almost four decades ago by Nüsslein-Volhard and Wieschaus. They identified and originally named the gene "wingless" (wg) after a phenotype discovered during their landmark genetic screen in Drosophila for body pattern defects. At around the same time, another researcher named Harold Varmus found that a murine tumor virus activates the mammalian wg homolog, Int-1, which...
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Non-Canonical Wnt Signaling Pathways01:41

Non-Canonical Wnt Signaling Pathways

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Wnt is a zygotic effect gene that is expressed during very early embryonic development. It regulates various processes in animals starting from early development through the adult stage, such as organogenesis in the embryo and maintenance of neuronal and blood stem cells. Wnt proteins can induce a wide variety of intracellular pathways depending upon the specific abilities of different Wnt ligands to form a complex with shared and cognate receptors in the presence of different co-receptors. The...
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Notch Signaling Pathway03:14

Notch Signaling Pathway

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The Notch signaling pathway is a major intracellular signaling pathway that is highly conserved over a broad spectrum of metazoan species. It stands unique from other intracellular signaling mechanisms in animals because notch protein itself acts as the receptor as well as the primary signaling molecule.
The Notch gene came into the limelight in 1914 after the discovery that its mutation in Drosophila melanogaster leads to a serrated (or "notched") wing margin phenotype. It was not...
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Role Of Notch Signalling In Intestinal Stem Cell Renewal01:12

Role Of Notch Signalling In Intestinal Stem Cell Renewal

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Notch signaling was first discovered in Drosophila melanogaster, where it is involved in cell lineage differentiation. Notch signaling regulates the maintenance and differentiation of intestinal stem cells or ISCs by controlling the expression of atonal homolog 1 or Atoh1. Atoh1 directs cells to differentiate into secretory cells.
Direct cell-to-cell contact is needed for the activation of Notch signaling. The signal is initiated when a notch ligand binds to a receptor on an adjacent cell, also...
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Role of Ephrin-Eph Signalling in Intestinal Stem Cell Renewal01:22

Role of Ephrin-Eph Signalling in Intestinal Stem Cell Renewal

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Erythropoietin-producing hepatocellular carcinoma receptor (Eph) and its ligand, Eph receptor-interacting protein (Ephrin) were first discovered in the human carcinoma cell line, hence the name. Ephrin-Eph interaction guides cells to reach their appropriate location in adult tissues. They also play an essential role in the immune system by helping in immune cell migration, adhesion, and activation. Based on their structure and function, Eph is divided into two classes — EphA and EphB.
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Catenins01:23

Catenins

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Catenins are characterized by multiple binding domains and dynamic structures that allow them to function as linker proteins in cell junction complexes. All catenins, except α-catenin, contain a characteristic protein sequence called the armadillo repeat and are therefore also called armadillo proteins.
Catenins in Cell Junctions
Catenins bind to cell adhesion molecules such as cadherins and link them to different cytoskeletal proteins depending on the type of cell junction. At the...
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Updated: Jul 2, 2025

Modeling Paracrine Noncanonical Wnt Signaling In Vitro
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The origin and evolution of Wnt signalling.

Michaela Holzem1,2,3,4, Michael Boutros5,6,7,8, Thomas W Holstein9

  • 1Division of Signalling and Functional Genomics, German Cancer Research Centre (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany. m.holzem@dkfz.de.

Nature Reviews. Genetics
|February 20, 2024
PubMed
Summary

The Wnt signaling pathway, crucial for animal development, shows ancient origins and conserved components even in non-animal species. Genomic studies reveal its evolutionary journey and ancestral functions.

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Using Confocal Analysis of Xenopus laevis to Investigate Modulators of Wnt and Shh Morphogen Gradients
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The Power of Simplicity: Sea Urchin Embryos as in Vivo Developmental Models for Studying Complex Cell-to-cell Signaling Network Interactions
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Area of Science:

  • Developmental Biology
  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • The Wnt signal transduction pathway is vital for animal development, differentiation, and tissue maintenance.
  • Studied for over 40 years, its evolutionary origins and ancestral functions are recent areas of investigation.
  • Components of Wnt signaling are highly conserved across diverse species, including basal metazoans.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the evolutionary origin of Wnt signaling.
  • To elucidate the ancestral function of the Wnt pathway.
  • To characterize the primal Wnt ligand, emphasizing genomic insights.

Main Methods:

  • Comparative genomics across pre-metazoan and basal metazoan species.
  • Analysis of conserved Wnt pathway components (canonical and non-canonical).
  • Review of existing literature on Wnt signaling evolution.

Main Results:

  • Wnt signaling components are highly conserved in basal metazoans.
  • Some Wnt pathway proteins exist in non-animal species, indicating early recruitment.
  • Genomic studies are key to understanding the pathway's ancient roles.

Conclusions:

  • Wnt signaling has deep evolutionary roots predating animals.
  • Functional adaptation of Wnt factors occurred during metazoan evolution.
  • Understanding Wnt's ancestral state provides insight into its fundamental biological roles.