Wnt信号转导与人类肿瘤

Wnt signal transduction and human tumor

Wnt信号转导途径对控制胚胎发育起十分重要的作用,其异常可导致胚胎发育异常和细胞的恶性转化。近年来的研究表明,Wnt信号通路的紊乱与多种人类肿瘤的发生密切相关。Wnt信号转导途径异常的核心机制是游离的β-连接蛋白在细胞内积累,并通过其下游途径引发特异靶基因的表达。本文就Wnt信号途径的组成、结构特点、转导途径及其调控,以及与人类肿瘤发生的关系作一综述。

Wnt signal transduction pathway plays a very important role in embryonic development, and its abnormality may lead to developmental defects and cellular malignant transformation. It has been shown that disturbances of the Wnt signal transduction pathway were significantly related to human neoplastic transformation. The core mechanism of the pathway abnormality was the accumulation of free β-catenin protein in the cytoplasm and nucleus resulting in the expressions of specific target genes by downstream pathway. This paper reviews the composition and structural character, transduction and regulation of the Wnt signal pathway and its relation with human tumorigenesis.