Abstract
BACKGROUND: WNT1 and WNT3A drive a dorsal to ventral gradient of β-catenin-dependent Wnt signaling in the developing spinal cord. However, the identity of the receptors mediating downstream functions remains poorly understood. RESULTS: In this report, we show that the spatiotemporal expression patterns of FZD10 and WNT1/WNT3A are highly correlated. We further show that in the presence of LRP6, FZD10 promotes WNT1 and WNT3A signaling using an 8xSuperTopFlash reporter assay. Consistent with a functional role for FZD10, we demonstrate that FZD10 is required for proliferation in the spinal cord. Finally, by using an in situ proximity ligation assay, we observe an interaction between FZD10 and WNT1 and WNT3A proteins. CONCLUSIONS: Together, our results identify FZD10 as a receptor for WNT1 and WNT3A in the developing chick spinal cord.