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Wnt domain found in protein Wnt-9a, Wnt-9b and similar proteins The family includes Wnt-9a and Wnt-9b, both of which function in the canonical Wnt/beta-catenin signaling pathway. Wnt-9a, also called protein Wnt-14, is required for normal timing of IHH expression during embryonic bone development, normal chondrocyte maturation and for normal bone mineralization during embryonic bone development. Wnt-9a plays a redundant role in maintaining joint integrity. It is a conserved regulator of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell development. Wnt-9b, also called protein Wnt-14b, or protein Wnt-15, plays a central role in the regulation of mesenchymal to epithelial transitions underlying organogenesis of the mammalian urogenital system. Wnt genes have been identified in vertebrates and invertebrates, but not in plants, unicellular eukaryotes, or prokaryotes. In humans, 19 WNT proteins are known. Because of their insolubility little is known about Wnt protein structure, but all have 23 or 24 Cys residues whose spacing is highly conserved. Signal transduction by Wnt proteins (including the Wnt/beta-catenin, the Wnt/Ca++, and the Wnt/polarity pathway) is mediated by receptors of the Frizzled and LDL-receptor-related protein (LRP) families. The Wnt signaling mediated by Wnt proteins that orchestrate and influence a myriad of cellular processes, such as cell proliferation, differentiation, tumorigenesis, apoptosis, and participation in immune defense during microbe infection. |
Jiyao W et al.(2023). "The conserved domain database in 2023.",