Chapter category: Development

Hedgehog Signalling in Prostate Morphogenesis

This chapter appears in the following book:

Shh and Gli Signaling and Development

Edited by: Carolyn E. Fisher and Sarah E.M. Howie
ISBN: 0-387-39956-9
» Get more information about this book at landesbioscience.com «

Chapter authors:
Marilyn L. G. Lamm* and Wade Bushman

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The prostate gland has not traditionally been a popular model system in developmental biology, and mechanistic studies of prostate morphogenesis have generally lagged behind work in other well-characterised systems. The mesenchymal-epithelial interactions in prostate development and the role of testosterone as an inducer of prostate morphogenesis have certainly been a subject of enduring interest, but the lack of molecular markers for prostate differentiation and of transgenic models with prostate-specific mutations have hindered molecular studies. This is changing, and recent findings have catalysed rapid advances in our understanding of prostate development. Studies have shown striking parallels between morphogenetic signals that regulate prostate morphogenesis and paradigms developed from work done in classic developmental model systems. Several growth factors such as fibroblast growth factor 10, bone morphogenetic protein 4 and transforming growth factor β1 apparently play similar roles in the foetal prostate as in other embryonic structures. A major signalling molecule in diverse developmental systems, Sonic hedgehog (Shh) has emerged as a subject of paramount interest in prostate biology. This is in part because of its key role in prostate ductal morphogenesis and differentiation but, largely, because Shh has recently been identified as a factor that promotes human prostate cancer growth. Therefore, the hedgehog signalling pathway is a promising target for therapies to slow or arrest prostate tumour growth.

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Chapter category: Development

Hedgehog Signalling in Prostate Morphogenesis

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