Deciphering the Function of Canonical Wnt Signals in Development and Disease: Conditional Loss- and Gain-of-Function Mutations of β-Catenin in Mice

September 2008 in “ Genes & Development ”

Tamara Grigoryan, Peter Wend, Alexandra Klaus‐Bergmann, Walter Birchmeier

Wnt signaling β-catenin progenitor cell stem cells cancer stem cells

Studysummary This review summarizes how genetic studies using conditional β-catenin loss- and gain-of-function mice have advanced understanding of canonical Wnt signaling's role in embryonic development, adult stem cell maintenance, and cancer modeling.

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Research cited in this study

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research Wnt-Dependent De Novo Hair Follicle Regeneration in Adult Mouse Skin After Wounding

829 citations , May 2007 in “Nature”

Hair follicles can regrow in wounded adult mouse skin using a process like embryo development.

research Bone Morphogenetic Protein Signaling Inhibits Hair Follicle Anagen Induction by Restricting Epithelial Stem/Progenitor Cell Activation and Expansion

176 citations , September 2006 in “Stem Cells”

This study found that active BMP signaling prevents epithelial stem cell activation and expansion in hair follicles, while its inhibition leads to HF stem/progenitor cell overproduction and matricomas.

research Defining the Impact of Beta-Catenin/Tcf Transactivation on Epithelial Stem Cells

384 citations , June 2005 in “Genes & development”

This study found that stabilized beta-catenin is crucial for activating stem cell transition from quiescence to proliferation in hair follicles by influencing gene expression within the stem cell niche.

research Canonical WNT Signaling Promotes Mammary Placode Development and Is Essential for Initiation of Mammary Gland Morphogenesis

293 citations , September 2004 in “Development”

This study found that WNT signaling is essential for the initiation of mammary gland morphogenesis in embryonic mice, promoting placode development and potentially playing a critical role in skin appendage formation.

research Expression of ΔNLef1 in Mouse Epidermis Results in Differentiation of Hair Follicles into Squamous Epidermal Cysts and Formation of Skin Tumors

297 citations , January 2002 in “Development”

In this study, repressing β-catenin/Lef1 signalling in mouse epidermis led to progressive hair loss, dermal cysts, and spontaneous skin tumors with sebaceous differentiation, indicating altered keratinocyte differentiation and potential tumourigenic processes.

research Tcf3 and Lef1 Regulate Lineage Differentiation of Multipotent Stem Cells in Skin

555 citations , July 2001 in “Genes & Development”

This study found that Tcf3 and Lef1 differently regulate cell differentiation in multipotent skin stem cells, with Tcf3 promoting follicle-like features and Lef1, when modified, promoting sebocyte differentiation.

research Multiple Roles for Activated LEF/TCF Transcription Complexes During Hair Follicle Development and Differentiation

990 citations , October 1999 in “Development”

This study found that LEF1/TCF3 is necessary but not sufficient for TOPGAL activation in hair follicle development, indicating complex regulation in the skin.

research WNT Signaling in the Control of Hair Growth and Structure

271 citations , March 1999 in “Developmental biology”

This study reveals that overexpression of Wnt3 in transgenic mouse skin leads to a short-hair phenotype and cyclical balding due to structural defects in hair shafts, highlighting a role for WNT signaling in hair growth regulation.