APC dosage effects in tumorigenesis and stem cell differentiation
Abstract
It is well established that concentration gradients of signaling molecules (the so-called "morphogens") organize and pattern tissues in developing animals. In particular, studies in Drosophila and different vertebrates have shown that gradients of the Wnt, Hedgehog (Hh) and transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) families of morphogens play critical roles in limb patterning. Morphogens are often expressed in organizing centres and can act over a long range to coordinate the patterning of an entire field of cells. These observations imply that exposure to different concentrations of these diffusible factors may trigger differential cellular responses. In order to study these dosage-dependent Wnt/beta-catenin signaling effects, we have generated several hypomorphic mutant alleles at the mouse Apc locus and studied their cellular and phenotypic outcomes in stem cell renewal and differentiation, and in tumorigenesis. The results clearly show that Apc mutations differentially affect the capacity of stem cells to differentiate in a dosage-dependent fashion. Likewise, different Apc mutations (and the corresponding Wnt signaling dosages) confer different degrees of susceptibility to tumorigenesis in the corresponding mouse models. T...Continue Reading
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