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Wnt domain found in protein Wnt-10b and similar proteins Wnt-10b, also called protein Wnt-12, specifically activates canonical Wnt/beta-catenin signaling and thus triggers beta-catenin/LEF/TCF-mediated transcriptional programs. It is involved in signaling networks controlling stemness, pluripotency and cell fate decisions. Wnt-10b is unique and plays an important role in differentiation of epithelial cells in the hair follicle. 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.
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