Wingless-type MMTV integration site family, member 3 (WNT3)

Wingless-type MMTV integration site family, member 3 (WNT3) is a secreted glycoprotein belonging to the Wnt family, acting as a ligand in canonical Wnt/β-catenin signaling. WNT3 plays critical roles in embryonic development, particularly in axis formation, pattern specification, and organogenesis. It binds to cell-surface Frizzled G protein–coupled receptors and co-receptors LRP5/6 to activate downstream signaling, leading to stabilization and nuclear translocation of β-catenin and consequent transcriptional activation of target genes. In adults and pathologic contexts, WNT3 contributes to stem cell maintenance, tissue regeneration, and has strong associations with oncogenesis—including colorectal, breast, lung, and gastric cancer—through aberrant pathway activation. Dysregulation of WNT3 can contribute to both tumor progression and resistance to targeted therapies via effects on cell proliferation, migration, and apoptosis[1][3][4][5].

Other names

Proto-oncogene Wnt-3INT4Proto-oncogene Int-4 homologWNT-3 proto-oncogene proteinTETAMSwingless-type MMTV integration site family member 3WNT3

Inhibition of Wnt ligand secretion (via PORCN inhibitors); Decoy receptors or antibodies targeting components of the Wnt-Frizzled-LRP5/6 complex can block signaling[5].