A novel beta-catenin-binding protein inhibits beta-catenin-dependent Tcf activation and axis formation

beta-Catenin is efficiently phosphorylated by glycogen synthase kinase-3beta in the Axin complex in the cytoplasm, resulting in the down-regulation. In response to Wnt, beta-catenin is stabilized and translocated into the nucleus where it stimulates gene expression through Tcf/Lef. Here we report a novel protein, designated Duplin (for axis duplication inhibitor), which negatively regulates the function of beta-catenin in the nucleus. Duplin was located in the nucleus. Duplin bound directly to the Armadillo repeats of beta-catenin, thereby inhibiting the binding of Tcf to beta-catenin. It did not affect the stability of beta-catenin but inhibited Wnt- or beta-catenin-dependent Tcf activation. Furthermore, expression of Duplin in Xenopus embryos inhibited the axis formation and beta-catenin-dependent axis duplication, and prevented the beta-catenin's ability to rescue ventralizing phenotypes induced by ultraviolet light irradiation. Thus, Duplin is a nuclear protein that inhibits beta-catenin signaling.     

Early embryonic death in mice lacking the beta-catenin-binding protein Duplin

The Wnt signaling pathway plays a pivotal role in vertebrate early development and morphogenesis. Duplin (axis duplication inhibitor) interacts with beta-catenin and prevents its binding to Tcf, thereby inhibiting downstream Wnt signaling. Here we show that Duplin is expressed predominantly from early- to mid-stage mouse embryogenesis, and we describe the generation of mice deficient in Duplin. Duplin(-/-) embryos manifest growth retardation from embryonic day 5.5 (E5.5) and developmental arrest accompanied by massive apoptosis at E7.5. The mutant embryos develop into an egg cylinder but do not form a primitive streak or mesoderm. Expression of beta-catenin target genes, including those for T (brachyury), Axin2, and cyclin D1, was not increased in Duplin(-/-) embryos, suggesting that the developmental defect is not simply attributable to upregulation of Wnt signaling caused by the lack of this inhibitor. These results suggest that Duplin plays an indispensable role, likely by a mechanism independent of inhibition of Wnt signaling, in mouse embryonic growth and differentiation at an early developmental stage.     

Inhibition of Wnt signaling pathway by a novel axin-binding protein

Axin forms a complex with adenomatous polyposis coli gene product, glycogen synthase kinase-3beta (GSK-3beta), beta-catenin, Dvl, and protein phosphatase 2A and functions as a scaffold protein in the Wnt signaling pathway. In the Axin complex, GSK-3beta efficiently phosphorylates beta-catenin, which is then ubiquitinated and degraded by proteasome. We isolated a novel protein that binds to Axin and named it Axam (for Axin associating molecule). Axam formed a complex with Axin in intact cells and bound directly to Axin. Axam inhibited the complex formation of Dvl with Axin and the activity of Dvl to suppress GSK-3beta-dependent phosphorylation of Axin. Furthermore, Axam induced the degradation of beta-catenin in SW480 cells and inhibited Wnt-dependent axis duplication in Xenopus embryos. These results suggest that Axam regulates the Wnt signaling pathway negatively by inhibiting the binding of Dvl to Axin.     

Maternal wnt11 activates the canonical wnt signaling pathway required for axis formation in Xenopus embryos

Wnt signaling pathways play essential roles in patterning and proliferation of embryonic and adult tissues. In many organisms, this signaling pathway directs axis formation. Although the importance of intracellular components of the pathway, including beta-catenin and Tcf3, has been established, the mechanism of their activation is uncertain. In Xenopus, the initiating signal that localizes beta-catenin to dorsal nuclei has been suggested to be intracellular and Wnt independent. Here, we provide three lines of evidence that the pathway specifying the dorsal axis is activated extracellularly in Xenopus embryos. First, we identify Wnt11 as the initiating signal. Second, we show that activation requires the glycosyl transferase X.EXT1. Third, we find that the EGF-CFC protein, FRL1, is also essential and interacts with Wnt11 to activate canonical Wnt signaling.     

Rap2 is required for Wnt/beta-catenin signaling pathway in Xenopus early development

The Wnt/beta-catenin signaling pathway is critical for the establishment of organizer and embryonic body axis in Xenopus development. Here, we present evidence that Xenopus Rap2, a member of Ras GTPase family, is implicated in Wnt/beta-catenin signaling during the dorsoventral axis specification. Ectopic expression of XRap2 can lead to neural induction without mesoderm differentiation. XRap2 dorsalizes ventral tissues, inducing axis duplication, organizer-specific gene expression and convergent extension movements. Knockdown of XRap2 causes ventralized phenotypes including shortened body axis and defective dorsoanterior patterning, which are associated with aberrant Wnt signaling. In line with this, XRap2 depletion inhibits beta-catenin stabilization and the induction of ectopic dorsal axis and Wnt-responsive genes caused by XWnt8, Dsh or beta-catenin, but has no effect on the signaling activities of a stabilized beta-catenin. Its knockdown also disrupts the vesicular localization of Dsh, thereby inhibiting Dsh-mediated beta-catenin stabilization and the membrane recruitment and phosphorylation of Dsh by frizzled signaling. Taking together, we suggest that XRap2 is involved in Wnt/beta-catenin signaling as a modulator of the subcellular localization of Dsh.     

Crystal structure of a beta-catenin/Tcf complex

The Wnt signaling pathway plays critical roles in embryonic development and tumorigenesis. Stimulation of the Wnt pathway results in the accumulation of a nuclear beta-catenin/Tcf complex, activating Wnt target genes. A crystal structure of beta-catenin bound to the beta-catenin binding domain of Tcf3 (Tcf3-CBD) has been determined. The Tcf3-CBD forms an elongated structure with three binding modules that runs antiparallel to beta-catenin along the positively charged groove formed by the armadillo repeats. Structure-based mutagenesis defines three sites in beta-catenin that are critical for binding the Tcf3-CBD and are differentially involved in binding APC, cadherin, and Axin. The structural and mutagenesis data reveal a potential target for molecular drug design studies.     

Protein kinase CK2 is required for dorsal axis formation in Xenopus embryos

Dorsal axis formation in Xenopus embryos is dependent upon asymmetrical localization of beta-catenin, a transducer of the canonical Wnt signaling pathway. Recent biochemical experiments have implicated protein kinase CK2 as a regulator of members of the Wnt pathway including beta-catenin. Here, we have examined the role of CK2 in dorsal axis formation. CK2 was present in the developing embryo at an appropriate time and place to participate in dorsal axis formation. Overexpression of mRNA encoding CK2 in ventral blastomeres was sufficient to induce a complete ectopic axis, mimicking Wnt signaling. A kinase-inactive mutant of CK2alpha was able to block ectopic axis formation induced by XWnt8 and beta-catenin and was capable of suppressing endogenous axis formation when overexpressed dorsally. Taken together, these studies demonstrate that CK2 is a bona fide member of the Wnt pathway and has a critical role in the establishment of the dorsal embryonic axis.     

Crystal structure of a beta-catenin/BCL9/Tcf4 complex

The canonical Wnt pathway plays critical roles in embryonic development, stem cell growth, and tumorigenesis. Stimulation of the Wnt pathway leads to the association of beta-catenin with Tcf and BCL9 in the nucleus, resulting in the transactivation of Wnt target genes. We have determined the crystal structure of a beta-catenin/BCL9/Tcf-4 triple complex at 2.6 A resolution. Our studies reveal that the beta-catenin binding site of BCL9 is distinct from that of most other beta-catenin partners and forms a good target for developing drugs that block canonical Wnt/beta-catenin signaling. The BCL9 beta-catenin binding domain (CBD) forms an alpha helix that binds to the first armadillo repeat of beta-catenin, which can be mutated to prevent beta-catenin binding to BCL9 without affecting cadherin or alpha-catenin binding. We also demonstrate that beta-catenin Y142 phosphorylation, which has been proposed to regulate BCL9-2 binding, does not directly affect the interaction of beta-catenin with either BCL9 or BCL9-2.     

Catenins, Wnt signaling and cancer

Recent studies indicate that plakoglobin may have a similar function to that of beta-catenin within the Wnt signaling pathway. beta-catenin is known to be an oncogene in many forms of human cancer, following acquisition of stabilizing mutations in amino terminal sequences. Kolligs(1) and coworkers show, however, that unlike beta-catenin, plakoglobin induces neoplastic transformation of rat epithelial cells in the absence of such stabilizing mutations. Cellular transformation by plakoglobin also appears to be distinct from that of beta-catenin in that it requires activation of the proto-oncogene c-myc. Surprisingly, c-myc is activated more efficiently by plakoglobin than beta-catenin, despite its previous identification as a target of Tcf/beta-catenin.(2) In contrast, a synthetic Tcf reporter gene is activated to a much greater extent by beta-catenin than plakoglobin. Plakoglobin and beta-catenin may therefore have different roles in Wnt signaling and cancer, which reflect their differential effects on target gene activity.     

Galphaq negatively regulates the Wnt-beta-catenin pathway and dorsal embryonic Xenopus laevis development

The non-canonical Wnt/Ca2+ signaling pathway has been implicated in the regulation of axis formation and gastrulation movements during early Xenopus laevis embryo development, by antagonizing the canonical Wnt/beta-catenin dorsalizing pathway and specifying ventral cell fate. However, the molecular mechanisms involved in this antagonist crosstalk are not known. Since Galphaq is the main regulator of Ca2+ signaling in vertebrates and from this perspective probably involved in the events elicited by the non-canonical Wnt/Ca2+ pathway, we decided to study the effect of wild-type Xenopus Gq (xGalphaq) in dorso-ventral axis embryo patterning. Overexpression of xGalphaq or its endogenous activation at the dorsal animal region of Xenopus embryo both induced a strong ventralized phenotype and inhibited the expression of dorsal-specific mesoderm markers goosecoid and chordin. Dorsal expression of an xGalphaq dominant-negative mutant reverted the xGalphaq-induced ventralized phenotype. Finally, we observed that the Wnt8-induced secondary axis formation is reverted by endogenous xGalphaq activation, indicating that it is negatively regulating the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway.