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Application of porcupine inhibitors in stem cell fate determination
Author(s) -
KalantaryCharvadeh Ashkan,
Hosseini Vahid,
Mehdizadeh Amir,
Darabi Masoud
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
chemical biology and drug design
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.59
H-Index - 77
eISSN - 1747-0285
pISSN - 1747-0277
DOI - 10.1111/cbdd.13704
Subject(s) - wnt signaling pathway , stem cell , microbiology and biotechnology , biology , cell fate determination , endoplasmic reticulum , signal transduction , biochemistry , transcription factor , gene
Porcupine (Porcn), a membrane‐bound O ‐acyltransferase, is an endoplasmic reticulum‐located protein that has catalytic activity. Porcn is involved in post‐translational lipid modification of wingless‐Int (Wnt) proteins and serves as an indispensable step in the Wnt proper secretion and signaling. Small‐molecule inhibitors targeting Porcn catalytic function in vitro and in vivo are of great interest not only for treating cancer and fibrotic disorders but also in the field of regenerative medicine. Although a number of studies have been conducted, the exact role of Porcn in stem cell fate is not entirely clear. In some cases, Porcn inhibition declined differentiation rate, and in others, it induced stem cell differentiation toward specific lineages. In this review, we first elaborated the Porcn catalytic activity and its inhibitors. Then, we discussed about the recently reported results of Porcn inhibitors in stem cells self‐renewal and differentiation.