Interactions between BMP and Wnt signaling pathways in mammalian cancers.
The bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) and Wnt signaling pathways have been extensively studied in the regulation of early embryonic development and in the control of cell proliferation in adult tissues. Genetic interaction between these highly conserved and ubiquitous signaling pathways has been observed in multiple settings in fruit flies, amphibians, zebrafish, and mammals. While the importance of Wnt signaling in carcinogenesis has been well established, more recent work has also implicated BMP signaling in apoptosis and as a negative regulator of proliferation. In this issue of Cancer Biology & Therapy, Nishanian et al. extend these studies and propose interesting potential interactions between BMP and Wnt signaling in transformed mammalian cells that could have important implications for the control of human cancers.
Department of Medicine (Hematology-Oncology), Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-6148, USA.
Hui-Chuan
HC
Huang
Peter S
PS
Klein
D000818:Animals; D055415:Bone Morphogenetic Protein 4; D019485:Bone Morphogenetic Proteins / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology*; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D003110:Colonic Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; D006801:Humans; D036341:Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D051379:Mice; D020411:Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis; D015398:Signal Transduction; D051153:Wnt Proteins; D029961:Zebrafish Proteins
C525809:BMP4 protein, human; C525810:Bmp4 protein, mouse; D055415:Bone Morphogenetic Protein 4; D019485:Bone Morphogenetic Proteins; D036341:Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; D051153:Wnt Proteins; D029961:Zebrafish Proteins; C525813:bmp4 protein, zebrafish