A study of the relationship between the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway and the gastrointestinal development of rat embryonic and perinatal periods

The Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway plays a critical role in directing cell fate during the embryonic development of animals and humans. To investigate the effects of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway on gastrointestinal development and differentiation, we studied the expression pattern of β-catenin, a key component of the pathway, in the gastrointestinal tissues of embryonic and perinatal rats. Immunohistochemistry was used to examine the expression levels of β-catenin in Sprague Dawley (SD) rat embryos at days 13, 18 and 21 and in SD rats at 1, 3, 7 and 28 days of age. We observed that the expression of β-catenin was greater and more diffuse in the gastrointestinal tissues of rat embryos at days 18 and 21 of gestation and in SD rats at days 1 and 3. In conclusion, our data suggest that β-catenin also plays an important role in the development of gastrointestinal tissues during the middle and late embryonic periods and the early postnatal period.