Wnt signaling through the beta-catenin pathway is sufficient to maintain, but not restore, anagen-phase characteristics of dermal papilla cells.
Dermal papilla cells of the hair follicle can be maintained in an active, hair-inducing state in vitro when cocultured with cells secreting Wnt3a. By inducing cultured dermal papilla cells to secrete Wnt themselves, we demonstrate that this activity is a direct effect of Wnt signaling to dermal papilla cells. We further demonstrate that the effects of Wnt3a are exerted through activation of the beta-catenin signal transduction pathway and do not require alternative Wnt transduction cascades. Once dermal papilla cells have lost hair-inducing properties in vitro, neither treatment with Wnt nor expression of a truncated and activating form of beta-catenin is sufficient to restore these properties to the cultured cells.
Cutaneous Biology Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Charlestown, Massachusetts 02129, USA.
Hidenao
H
Shimizu
Bruce A
BA
Morgan
D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D003598:Cytoskeletal Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins; D018859:Hair Follicle / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism*; D007202:Indicators and Reagents / Q000378:metabolism; D008164:Luminescent Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D011247:Pregnancy; D011506:Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D012190:Retroviridae / Q000235:genetics; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000502:physiology*; D015534:Trans-Activators / Q000378:metabolism*; D051153:Wnt Proteins; D060508:Wnt3 Protein; D060509:Wnt3A Protein; D051176:beta Catenin
C495267:CTNNB1 protein, mouse; D003598:Cytoskeletal Proteins; D007202:Indicators and Reagents; D008164:Luminescent Proteins; D011506:Proteins; D015534:Trans-Activators; D051153:Wnt Proteins; D060508:Wnt3 Protein; D060509:Wnt3A Protein; C555511:Wnt3a protein, mouse; D051176:beta Catenin; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins