Department of Biochemistry, College of Life Science and Biotechnology, Yonsei University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
IUBMB Life. 2012 Sep;64(9):724-31. doi: 10.1002/iub.1062. Epub 2012 Jul 18.
The Wnt signaling pathway is involved in a wide range of developmental and physiological processes, such as cell fate specification, tissue morphogenesis, and homeostasis. Thus, its dysregulation has been found in multiple diseases, including some cardiovascular disorders. The loss or gain of function of Wnt pathway components results in abnormal vascular development and angiogenesis. Further study has revealed that Wnt signaling in endothelial cells appears to contribute to vascular morphogenesis and endothelial cell specification. Owing to the significance of Wnt signaling in angiogenesis, Wnt antagonists have been considered potential treatments for neovascular disorders. In line with this, members of the Dkk protein family (Dkks), well-known Wnt antagonists, have been recently found to regulate angiogenesis. This review summarizes our present knowledge of the roles of Wnt signaling and Wnt antagonists, particularly Dkks, in angiogenic regulation and explores the therapeutic potential of Wnt antagonists.
Wnt 信号通路参与广泛的发育和生理过程，如细胞命运特化、组织形态发生和动态平衡。因此，其失调已在多种疾病中发现，包括一些心血管疾病。Wnt 通路成分的功能丧失或获得导致异常血管发育和血管生成。进一步的研究表明，内皮细胞中的 Wnt 信号似乎有助于血管形态发生和内皮细胞特化。由于 Wnt 信号在血管生成中的重要性，Wnt 拮抗剂已被认为是治疗新血管疾病的潜在方法。与此一致的是，Dkk 蛋白家族（Dkks）成员，即众所周知的 Wnt 拮抗剂，最近被发现调节血管生成。这篇综述总结了我们目前对 Wnt 信号和 Wnt 拮抗剂（特别是 Dkks）在血管生成调节中的作用的认识，并探讨了 Wnt 拮抗剂的治疗潜力。
