Colorectal cancer (CRC), the third most common cancer worldwide, also has the
highest rate of cancer-related morbidity and mortality. WNT signaling is
initiated by binding of WNT to various receptors, including frizzleds (FZDs),
and plays a critical role in CRC and other tumor development by regulating
proliferation, differentiation, migration, apoptosis, and polarity. Among the
members of the FZD family, FZD6 is broadly expressed in various tissues, and its
overexpression has been reported in several cancers, suggesting an important
role in cancer development. In this study, we investigated the expression of
FZD6 in patients with CRC and found it to be increased in tumors, as compared to
paired adjacent non-tumor tissues. Additionally, we found that FZD6 expression
was negatively regulated by miR199a5p in CRC cells. These results suggest that
overexpression of FZD6, mediated by reduced expression of miR-199a-5p, may play
an important role in the development of CRC. [BMB Reports 2015; 48(6):
360-366]