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New Rochelle, NY, September 20, 2018-Researchers have made a significant new discovery concerning the signaling mechanisms that enable newts to regrow their tails after injury. Specifically, this process is shown to require the coordinated activation of the Hedgehog (Hh) and Wnt pathways. The study is published in Stem Cells and Development, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. Click here to read the full-text article free on the Stem Cells and Development website through October 20, 2018.
Mary G. Garry, Daniel J. Garry, and colleagues from the University of Minnesota present their work in a paper titled "Hedgehog and Wnt signaling pathways regulate tail regeneration". Previous studies have characterized the ability of certain organisms to regenerate appendages morphologically and identified some of the pathways involved, but precise mechanistic detail has been lacking. In this report using newts, the authors first identified key players in the Hh and Wnt pathways that are upregulated after acute tail injury. They then demonstrated through loss-of-function and gain-of-function experiments that each pathway is essential for proper tissue regeneration. Finally, by inhibiting each of these pathways individually while activating the other, the authors found that the Wnt pathway likely functions upstream of and activates the Hh pathway in response to injury.
"The pursuit of advances in limb regeneration desperately needs developmental understanding," says Editor-in-Chief Graham C. Parker, PhD, The Carman and Ann Adams Department of Pediatrics, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, MI. "This study suggests Wnt activity precedes the Hedgehog pathway and further indicates two roles for Hedgehog signaling, firstly in tissue patterning, then secondly proliferation."
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About the Journal
Stem Cells and Development is an authoritative peer-reviewed journal published 24 times per year in print and online. The Journal is dedicated to communication and objective analysis of developments in the biology, characteristics, and therapeutic utility of stem cells, especially those of the hematopoietic system. A complete table of contents and free sample issue may be viewed on the Stem Cells and Development website.
About the Publisher
Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, including Cellular Reprogramming, Tissue Engineering, and Human Gene Therapy. Its biotechnology trade magazine, GEN (Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News), was the first in its field and is today the industry's most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm's 80 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers website.
Journal
Stem Cells and Development