Award Details:
Award Type: Catalyst
Award #: C-055
Proposal Title: Mapping the Regulation of Wnt Signaling with β-Cat-eleon: A Fluorescent β-catenin “timer”
PI(s): Fotini Gounari (UChicago) and Brad Merrill (UIC)
Award Amount: $200,000.00
Application Cycle: Round 18 (Fall 2014)
Award Start Date: February 1, 2015
Award End Date: January 31, 2017
Abstract:
All animals possess a version of the Wnt signaling pathway, which transmits signals from outside of cells to DNA in the nucleus. These signals specify cell identities in embryos, and control stem cells in adults. In humans, deregulated Wnt signaling causes cancer in several organs, including the colon, blood, mammary gland and liver. Despite the importance of Wnt signaling, it is not clear how the pathway stimulates its many of its physiological effects. We will develop a novel method of detecting Wnt signaling, named “β-cat-eleon”, which will identify new ways in which Wnt controls cell identities and identify new genetic regulators of Wnt signaling. This research is needed to map how Wnt signaling informs the cell about its environment and the genes needed for this process. Such discoveries are paramount for understanding what goes wrong in diseases such as cancer.