Wnt/β-Catenin Signaling Stabilizes Hemidesmosomes in Keratinocytes

November 2021 in “ The journal of investigative dermatology/Journal of investigative dermatology ”

Hideyuki Kosumi, Mika Watanabe, Satoru Shinkuma, Takuma Nohara, Yoshihiko Fujimura, Tadasuke Tsukiyama, Giacomo Donati, Hiroaki Iwata, Hideki Nakamura, Hideyuki Ujiie, Ken Natsuga

Wnt/β-catenin signaling hemidesmosomes keratinocytes plectin type XVII collagen atypical protein kinase C epidermolysis bullosa Wnt signaling HDs aPKC

Studysummary This study found that inhibiting Wnt/β-catenin signaling disrupted hemidesmosome organization in keratinocytes, suggesting potential therapeutic targets for HD-defective diseases like epidermolysis bullosa. Our plain-language summary of this paper — not a Tressless recommendation.

This study demonstrates that Wnt/β-catenin signaling is essential for the stability and organization of hemidesmosomes (HDs) in keratinocytes. Inhibition of Wnt signaling led to a significant reduction in HD components, such as plectin and type XVII collagen, both in vitro and in vivo, without affecting keratinocyte differentiation. Additionally, inhibition of atypical protein kinase C (aPKC) could mitigate the disarrangement caused by Wnt inhibition. These findings suggest that targeting the Wnt signaling pathway could be a potential therapeutic strategy for treating HD-defective diseases like epidermolysis bullosa.

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