Hedgehog morphogen: from secretion to reception.
A major challenge of developmental biology is to understand how cells coordinate developmental behaviors with their neighbors. To achieve this, cells often employ signaling molecules that emanate from a local source and act at a distance on target cells. The Hedgehog morphogen is an essential signaling molecule required for numerous processes during animal development. Emphasizing the importance of this molecule for both growth control and patterning, Hedgehog signaling activity is often deregulated during cancer formation and progression. The secretion and spread of Hedgehog are not passive processes, but require accessory molecules involved in Hedgehog processing, release, spread and reception. In this review, I focus on the factors that are required to control the spread and activity of Hedgehog, highlighting recent data that have shed light on these processes.
Institut de Biologie du Développement & Cancer - IBDC, Université de Nice Sophia-Antipolis, UMR6543 CNRS, Centre de Biochimie, Parc Valrose, 06108 Nice cedex 2, France. gallet@unice.fr
Armel
A
Gallet
D000818:Animals; D053823:Hedgehog Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D011485:Protein Binding; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface / Q000378:metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction
D053823:Hedgehog Proteins; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface