eLife Sciences Publications, eLife, (4), 2015
DOI: 10.7554/elife.07091
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Wnt signaling is essential for tissue homeostasis and its dysregulation causes cancer. Wnt ligands trigger signaling by activating Frizzled receptors (FZDRs), which belong to the G-protein coupled receptor superfamily. However, the mechanisms of G protein activation in Wnt signaling remain controversial. In this study, we demonstrate that FZDRs activate G proteins and trigger non-canonical Wnt signaling via the Dishevelled-binding protein, Daple. Daple contains a G alpha-binding and activating (GBA) motif, which activates G alpha i proteins and an adjacent domain that directly binds FZDRs, thereby linking Wnt stimulation to G protein activation. This triggers non-canonical Wnt responses, that is, suppresses the beta-catenin/TCF/LEF pathway and tumorigenesis, but enhances PI3K-Akt and Rac1 signals and tumor cell invasiveness. In colorectal cancers, Daple is suppressed during adenoma-to-carcinoma transformation and expressed later in metastasized tumor cells. Thus, Daple activates Gai and enhances non-canonical Wnt signaling by FZDRs, and its dysregulation can impact both tumor initiation and progression to metastasis.