The hedgehog signalling pathway in cell migration and guidance: What we have learned from drosophila melanogaster

© 2015 by the author; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. Cell migration and guidance are complex processes required for morphogenesis, the formation of tumor metastases, and the progression of human cancer. During migration, guidance molecules induce cell directionality and movement through complex...

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Bibliographic Details
Author: Araújo, Sofia J.
Format: article
Status:Published version
Publication Date:2015
Country:España
Institution:Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)
Repository:DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC
OAI Identifier:oai:digital.csic.es:10261/124118
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/10261/124118
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:Hedgehog
patched
Drosophila melanogaster
Cell migration
guidance
Description
Summary:© 2015 by the author; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. Cell migration and guidance are complex processes required for morphogenesis, the formation of tumor metastases, and the progression of human cancer. During migration, guidance molecules induce cell directionality and movement through complex intracellular mechanisms. Expression of these molecules has to be tightly regulated and their signals properly interpreted by the receiving cells so as to ensure correct navigation. This molecular control is fundamental for both normal morphogenesis and human disease. The Hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway is evolutionarily conserved and known to be crucial for normal cellular growth and differentiation throughout the animal kingdom. The relevance of Hh signaling for human disease is emphasized by its activation in many cancers. Here, I review the current knowledge regarding the involvement of the Hh pathway in cell migration and guidance during Drosophila development and discuss its implications for human cancer origin and progression.