Centrosomal localization of Diversin and its relevance to Wnt signaling

K Itoh, A Jenny, M Mlodzik… - Journal of cell science, 2009 - journals.biologists.com
K Itoh, A Jenny, M Mlodzik, SY Sokol
Journal of cell science, 2009journals.biologists.com
Wnt pathways regulate many developmental processes, including cell-fate specification, cell
polarity, and cell movements during morphogenesis. The subcellular distribution of pathway
mediators in specific cellular compartments might be crucial for the selection of pathway
targets and signaling specificity. We find that the ankyrin-repeat protein Diversin, which
functions in different Wnt signaling branches, localizes to the centrosome in Xenopus
ectoderm and mammalian cells. Upon stimulation with Wnt ligands, the centrosomal …
Wnt pathways regulate many developmental processes, including cell-fate specification, cell polarity, and cell movements during morphogenesis. The subcellular distribution of pathway mediators in specific cellular compartments might be crucial for the selection of pathway targets and signaling specificity. We find that the ankyrin-repeat protein Diversin, which functions in different Wnt signaling branches, localizes to the centrosome in Xenopus ectoderm and mammalian cells. Upon stimulation with Wnt ligands, the centrosomal distribution of Diversin is transformed into punctate cortical localization. Also, Diversin was recruited by Frizzled receptors to non-homogeneous Dishevelled-containing cortical patches. Importantly, Diversin deletion constructs, which did not localize to the centrosome, failed to efficiently antagonize Wnt signaling. Furthermore, a C-terminal construct that interfered with Diversin localization inhibited Diversin-mediated β-catenin degradation. These observations suggest that the centrosomal localization of Diversin is crucial for its function in Wnt signaling.
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