Description
Wnt expression and signal transduction have been identified as critical components in regulating embryogenesis, cell proliferation, and bone, glucose and lipid metabolism. Wnt-3a signalling also plays a role in regulating the differentation of stem cells. Wnt-3a is a member of the highly conserved, structurally related cysteine-rich Wnt family glycoproteins important for normal developmental processes and oncogenesis. Wnt-3a proteins are secreted and bind to receptors of the Frizzled and LRP families on the cell surface, which leads to the stabilization of beta-catenin and increase of beta-catenin translocation into the nucleus where it binds to TCF/LEF transcription factors to promote gene expression. The predicted mouse Wnt-3a protein of 352 amino acid residues and contains an N-terminal signal peptide for secretion. It shares 96% amino acid identity to human Wnt-3a protein. Due to glycosylation, it migrates at an apparent molecular weight of ~40 kDa by SDS-PAGE analysis under reducing conditions.