XB-FEAT-5848002

bighead

This is the community wiki page for the gene bighead please feel free to add any information that is relevant to this gene that is not already captured elsewhere in Xenbase.

notes on synonyms

the genes on XB-genepage-5848002, currently called XB5848002, also known as 'loc100494211', was first described by Ding et al 2018, in XB-ART-55302, who named it 'Bighead'. As there is no known human ortholog, and the zebrafish gene remains undescribed and unnamed, we have applied the authors name to the Xenopus genes, and updated the name to 'wnt antagonist XB5848002' for the time-being, giving credit where credit is due.

notes on gene function

Bighead is a Wnt antagonist secreted by the Xenopus Spemann organizer that promotes Lrp6 endocytosis. It was shown to be conserved in frogs and fishes, but absent in higher vertebrates such as mammals.

Reference: Yi Ding, Gabriele Colozza, Eric A. Sosa, Yuki Moriyama, Samantha Rundle, Lukasz Salwinski, and Edward M. De Robertis PNAS, 2018 https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1812117115.

When fully characterized, the gene name and synonyms may be updated to reflect what kind of protien/gene family this gene represents, but until then it will probably be known as 'bighead'.

protein function and phenotype notes

Bighead is a secreted protein that inhibits Wnt by causing the endocytosis and degradation in lysosomes of the Wnt coreceptor Lrp6. Its overexpression induces embryos with larger heads, and its knockdown reduces head development through the regulation of Wnt signaling.

source: Bighead is a Wnt antagonist secreted by the Xenopus Spemann organizer that promotes Lrp6 endocytosis Yi Ding, Gabriele Colozza, Eric A. Sosa, Yuki Moriyama, Samantha Rundle, Lukasz Salwinski, and Edward M. De Robertis PNAS published ahead of print September 12, 2018 https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1812117115.