beta Catenin Monoclonal Antibody (15B8), eBioscience™, Invitrogen™

Description

• The 15B8 MAb reacts with human and mouse beta-catenin, one member of a family of catenins, which are intracellular proteins that interact with cadherins to mediate cellular adhesion
• More specifically, beta-catenin binds to the cytoplasmic tail of E-cadherin
• In addition, this molecule is a component of the canonical Wnt signaling pathway
• In the absence of Wnt binding its receptor, beta-catenin is phosphorylated and resides in the cytoplasm where it is eventually targeted for degradation by ubiquitination
• Upon Wnt binding, beta-catenin becomes dephosphorylated, translocates to the nucleus, and modulates gene expression in partnership with the transcription factors T cell factor (TCF) and lymphocyte enhancer binding factor (LEF)
• Expression of beta-catenin is found in a wide variety of non-immune and immune tissues, including thymocytes and T and B lymphocytes
• The Wnt and beta-catenin signaling pathway has been demonstrated to play a crucial role in the development of T, B, and hematopoietic stem cells
• Beta-catenin, an adherens junction (AJ) protein, was originally identified as a component of cell-cell adhesion structures
• AJs are necessary for the creation and maintenance of epithelial cell layers by regulating cell growth and adhesion between cells
• Beta-catenin interacts with the cytoplasmic domain of E-cadherin and links E-cadherin to alpha-catenin, which in turn mediates anchorage of the E-cadherin complex to the cortical actin cytoskeleton
• Studies show that Beta-catenin also binds to another cytoskeletal complex containing the adenomatous polyposis coli protein and microtubules, and interacts with several signaling pathways that include tyrosine kinases, phosphatases and Wnt/Wingless
• The interplay between beta-catenin, cytoskeletal complexes and signaling pathways may regulate morphogenesis
• Beta-catenin is expressed in several hair follicle cell types, basal and peripheral matrix cells, and cells of the outer and inner root sheats
• A pathological role of beta-catenin has been identified in pilomatrixoma (PTR), medulloblastoma (MDB), colorectal cancer (CRC), ovarian cancer, and tumor development
• In the nucleus, beta-catenin serves to co activate a family of Lef/Tcf transcription factors that stimulate transcription of target genes including those encoding cyclin D and c-myc that promote cell proliferation
• The influence on cell proliferation is the molecular basis for the role of beta-catenin in tumorgenesis, specifically, solid tumors of the breast, colon, liver, lung, gastric, prostate, and skin.