Identification of a Link Between Wnt/β-Catenin Signaling and the Cell Fusion Pathway

The study identified a link between Wnt/β-catenin signaling and the cell fusion pathway, specifically targeting the GCM1/syncytin pathway, which was crucial for the fusion of human choriocarcinoma cells. It demonstrated that β-catenin/BCL9L/TCF4 signaling directly regulated this pathway, and its downregulation in BCL9L-deficient mice led to blocked fusion and differentiation of syncytiotrophoblast cells. The research used BeWo cells and found that knockdown of BCL9L, β-catenin, or TCF4 significantly reduced the expression of GCM1, syncytin-1, and syncytin-2, as well as the number of cell fusion events. The study suggested that Wnt/β-catenin signaling played a significant role in placental development and potentially in tissue regeneration and cancer development.