Regulating Wnt signalling, a strategy to prevent neurodegeneration and induce regeneration

During the past three decades, Wingless/Int (Wnt) signaling has emerged as an essential regulator crucial for neuronal development and maintenance (Inestrosa and Arenas, 2010). In addition, Wnt signaling was recently shown to be involved in the regulation of synaptic function and plasticity, which is critical for learning and memory (Oliva et al., 2013). Deregulation of Wnt signaling has been proposed as a key contributor to the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative disorders including Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD). This increasing knowledge of the specific roles of Wnt signaling cascades during different stages of life has suggested innovative therapeutic strategies for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. The reviews under the theme ‘Wnt Signaling Cascades in Neurodevelopment, Neurodegeneration and Regeneration’ published in this issue of JMCB provide an up-to-date overview of the importance of Wnt signaling in midbrain dopaminergic (mDA) development, synaptic maintenance in the hippocampus, neuroinflammatory responses, development of neurodegenerative diseases, and highlight new therapeutic approaches.