title: The long and the short of Wnt signaling in C. elegans.
abstract: The simplicity of C. elegans makes it an outstanding system to study the role of Wnt signaling in development. Many asymmetric cell divisions in C. elegans require the Wnt/beta-catenin asymmetry pathway. Recent studies confirm that SYS-1 is a structurally and functionally divergent beta-catenin, and implicate lipids and retrograde trafficking in maintenance of WRM-1/beta-catenin asymmetry. Wnts also regulate short-range events such as spindle rotation and gastrulation, and a PCP-like pathway regulates asymmetric divisions. Long-range, cell non-autonomous Wnt signals regulate vulval induction. Both short-range and long-range Wnt signal s are regulated by recycling of MIG-14/Wntless via the retromer complex. These studies indicate that C. elegans continues to be useful for identifying new, conserved mechanisms underlying Wnt signaling in metazoans.
authors.affiliation: Graduate Program in Cellular and Molecular Biology, Department of Zoology, University of Wisconsin, 1117 W. Johnson Street, Madison, WI 53706, USA. jdhardin@wisc.edu
authors.forename: Jeff
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hardin
authors.forename: Ryan S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: King
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D019521:Body Patterning / Q000235:genetics*; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000196:embryology* / Q000235:genetics*; D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins / Q000502:physiology; D002352:Carrier Proteins / Q000502:physiology; D016764:Cell Polarity / Q000235:genetics; D004625:Embryo, Nonmammalian; D047908:Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; D008954:Models, Biological; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D008941:Spindle Apparatus / Q000502:physiology; D013569:Synapses / Q000502:physiology; D022161:Transport Vesicles / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology; D051153:Wnt Proteins / Q000502:physiology*; D051176:beta Catenin / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins; D002352:Carrier Proteins; D047908:Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; C527888:Mig-14 protein, C elegans; D051153:Wnt Proteins; D051176:beta Catenin