Mechanisms of a novel Wnt signaling pathway regulating asymmetric division

干细胞不对称分裂产生不同的子细胞。在线虫中，细胞外信号（Wnts）调节肿瘤抑制蛋白APC在细胞皮层上的不对称定位。我们发现APC通过诱导纺锤体结构的不对称性来调节β-catenin的不对称核定位和子细胞之间的不同基因表达。我们的研究结果显示了一种新的信号转导机制，其中细胞外信号通过调节微管传递到细胞核。

Stem cells divide asymmetrically to produce distinct daughter cells. In the nematode, extracellular signals (Wnts) regulate asymmetric localization of tumor suppressor protein APC on the cell cortex. We discovered that APC regulates asymmetric nuclear localization of β-catenin and distinct gene expression between daughter cells by inducing asymmetry of the spindle structure. Our results show a novel mechanism of signal transduction in which extracellular signals are transmitted into nuclei by modulating microtubules.