Coudreuse Damien Y M, Roël Giulietta, Betist Marco C, Destrée Olivier, Korswagen Hendrik C
Hubrecht Laboratory and Center for Biomedical Genetics, Uppsalalaan 8, 3584 CT, Utrecht, Netherlands.
Science. 2006 May 12;312(5775):921-4. doi: 10.1126/science.1124856. Epub 2006 Apr 27.
Wnt proteins function as morphogens that can form long-range concentration gradients to pattern developing tissues. Here, we show that the retromer, a multiprotein complex involved in intracellular protein trafficking, is required for long-range signaling of the Caenorhabditis elegans Wnt ortholog EGL-20. The retromer functions in EGL-20-producing cells to allow the formation of an EGL-20 gradient along the anteroposterior axis. This function is evolutionarily conserved, because Wnt target gene expression is also impaired in the absence of the retromer complex in vertebrates. These results demonstrate that the ability of Wnt to regulate long-range patterning events is dependent on a critical and conserved function of the retromer complex within Wnt-producing cells.
Wnt蛋白作为形态发生素发挥作用，能够形成长距离浓度梯度以调控发育中的组织形成模式。在此，我们表明，回收体（一种参与细胞内蛋白质运输的多蛋白复合物）对于秀丽隐杆线虫Wnt直系同源物EGL-20的长距离信号传导是必需的。回收体在产生EGL-20的细胞中发挥作用，以允许沿前后轴形成EGL-20梯度。这种功能在进化上是保守的，因为在脊椎动物中缺乏回收体复合物时，Wnt靶基因的表达也会受损。这些结果表明，Wnt调节长距离模式形成事件的能力取决于Wnt产生细胞内回收体复合物的关键保守功能。
