High levels of canonical Wnt signaling lead to loss of stemness and increased differentiation in hematopoietic stem cells

Canonical Wnt signalling regulates the self-renewal of most if not all stem cell systems. In the blood system, the role of Wnt signalling has been subject of much debate, with positive and negative roles of Wnt signalling proposed for hematopoietic stem cells (HSC). As we have shown previously, this controversy can be largely explained by the effects of different dosages of Wnt signalling. What remained unclear however, was why high Wnt signals would lead to loss of reconstituting capacity. To better understand this phenomenon, we have taken advantage of a series of hypomorphic mutant Apc alleles resulting in a broad range of Wnt dosages in HSCs, purified those HSCs and performed whole genome gene expression analyses. Gene expression profiling and functional studies show that HSCs with APC mutations lead to high Wnt levels , enhanced differentiation and diminished proliferation, but have no effect on apoptosis, collectively leading to loss of stemness. Thus, we provide mechanistic insight into the role of APC mutations and Wnt signalling in HSC biology. As Wnt signals are explored in various in vivo and ex vivo expansion protocols for HSCs, our findings also have clinical ramifications.

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Famili F, Brugman MH, Taskesen E, Naber BEA, Fodde R, Staal FJT