Spatial and temporal aspects of Wnt signaling and planar cell polarity during vertebrate embryonic development

Wnt signaling pathways act at multiple locations and developmental stages to specify cell fate and polarity in vertebrate embryos. A long-standing question is how the same molecular machinery can be reused to produce different outcomes. The canonical Wnt/β-catenin branch modulates target gene transc...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Seminars in cell & developmental biology 2015-06, Vol.42, p.78-85
Main Author: Sokol, Sergei Y.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Cell Polarity
Embryonic Development
Humans
Morphogenesis
Neural tube
Planar cell polarity
Vertebrates - embryology
Vertebrates - metabolism
Wnt
Wnt Signaling Pathway
Xenopus
Xenopus - embryology
Xenopus - metabolism
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Summary:Wnt signaling pathways act at multiple locations and developmental stages to specify cell fate and polarity in vertebrate embryos. A long-standing question is how the same molecular machinery can be reused to produce different outcomes. The canonical Wnt/β-catenin branch modulates target gene transcription to specify cell fates along the dorsoventral and anteroposterior embryonic axes. By contrast, the Wnt/planar cell polarity (PCP) branch is responsible for cell polarization along main body axes, which coordinates morphogenetic cell behaviors during gastrulation and neurulation. Whereas both cell fate and cell polarity are modulated by spatially- and temporally-restricted Wnt activity, the downstream signaling mechanisms are very diverse. This review highlights recent progress in the understanding of Wnt-dependent molecular events leading to the establishment of PCP and linking it to early morphogenetic processes.
ISSN:1084-9521
1096-3634
DOI:10.1016/j.semcdb.2015.05.002