Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Akhshi, Tara
• Shannon, Rachel
• Trimble, William S.

Titel

The complex web of canonical and non‐canonical Hedgehog signaling

Ist Teil von

• BioEssays, 2022-03, Vol.44 (3), p.e2100183-n/a

Ort / Verlag

United States: Wiley Subscription Services, Inc

Erscheinungsjahr

2022

Quelle

Wiley Online Library All Journals

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• Hedgehog (Hh) signaling is a widely studied signaling pathway because of its critical roles during development and in cell homeostasis. Vertebrate canonical and non‐canonical Hh signaling are typically assumed to be distinct and occur in different cellular compartments. While research has primarily focused on the canonical form of Hh signaling and its dependency on primary cilia – microtubule‐based signaling hubs – an extensive list of crucial functions mediated by non‐canonical Hh signaling has emerged. Moreover, amounting evidence indicates that canonical and non‐canonical modes of Hh signaling are interlinked, and that they can overlap spatially, and in many cases interact functionally. Here, we discuss some of the many cellular effects of non‐canonical signaling and discuss new evidence indicating inter‐relationships with canonical signaling. We discuss how Smoothened (Smo), a key component of the Hh pathway, might coordinate such diverse downstream effects. Collectively, pursuit of questions such as those proposed here will aid in elucidating the full extent of Smo function in development and advance its use as a target for cancer therapeutics. Smo activation could result in activation of canonical or various modes of non‐canonical Hh signaling. Future studies are required to determine how Smo is differentially activated. It is possible that in addition to cholesterol other specific endogenous ligands can drive Smo activity towards certain pathways, which may or may not involve its conformational change.