Wnt/ β-catenin signaling as a useful therapeutic target in hepatoblastoma.

Wnt/β-catenin signaling as a useful therapeutic target in hepatoblastoma. Biosci Rep. 2019 Sep 11;: Authors: Sha YL, Liu S, Yan WW, Dong B Abstract Hepatoblastoma is a malignant tumor of the liver of childhood that generally occurs at the age of 2 to 3 years. There have been ample evidences from the preclinical as well as clinical studies suggesting the activation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling in hepatoblastoma, which is mainly attributed to the somatic mutations in the exon 3 of β-catenin gene. There is increased translocation of β-catenin protein from the cell surface to cytoplasm and nucleus and intracellular accumulation is directly linked to the severity of the cancer. Accordingly, the alterations in β-catenin and its target genes may be used as markers in the diagnosis and prognosis of pediatric live tumors. Furthermore, scientists have reported the therapeutic usefulness of inhibition of Wnt/β-catenin signaling in hepatoblastoma and this inhibition of signaling has been done using different methods including siRNA, miRNA and pharmacological agents. Wnt/β-catenin works in association with other signaling pathways to induce the development of hepatoblastoma including YAP1, mTOR-1, SLC38A1, glypican 3, NF-kB, epidermal growth factor receptor, ERK1/2, TNF-α, regenerating islet-derived 1 and 3 alpha, substance P/neurokinin-1 receptor and PARP-1. The present review describes the key role of Wnt/β-catenin signaling in the deve...
Source: Bioscience Reports - Category: Biomedical Science Authors: Tags: Biosci Rep Source Type: research