期刊名称：Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
印刷版ISSN：0027-8424
电子版ISSN：1091-6490
出版年度：2010
卷号：107
期号：50
页码：21564-21569
DOI：10.1073/pnas.1007326107
语种：English
出版社：The National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
摘要：The switch between black and yellow pigment is mediated by the interaction between Melanocortin receptor 1 (Mc1r) and its antagonist Agouti, but the genetic and developmental mechanisms that modify this interaction to obtain different coat color in distinct environments are poorly understood. Here, the role of Wnt/{beta}-catenin signaling in the regulation of pigment-type switching was studied. Loss and gain of function of {beta}-catenin in the dermal papilla (DP) of the hair follicle results in yellow and black animals, respectively. {beta}-Catenin activity in the DP suppresses Agouti expression and activates Corin, a negative regulator of Agouti activity. In addition, {beta}-catenin activity in the DP regulates melanocyte activity by a mechanism that is independent of both Agouti and Corin. The coordinate and inverse regulation of Agouti and Corin renders pelage pigmentation sensitive to changes in {beta}-catenin activity in the DP that do not alter pelage structure. As a result, the signals that specify two biologically distinct quantitative traits are partially uncoupled despite their common regulation by the {beta}-catenin pathway in the same cells.
