Wnt/β-catenin signaling has been broadly implicated in human cancers and experimental cancer models of animals. Aberrant activation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling is tightly linked with the increment of prevalence, advancement of malignant progression, development of poor prognostics, and even ascendence of the cancer-associated mortality. Early experimental investigations have proposed the theoretical potential that efficient repression of this signaling might provide promising therapeutic choices in managing various types of cancers. Up to date, many therapies targeting Wnt/β-catenin signaling in cancers have been developed, which is assumed to endow clinicians with new opportunities of developing more satisfactory and precise remedies for cancer patients with aberrant Wnt/β-catenin signaling. However, current facts indicate that the clinical translations of Wnt/β-catenin signaling-dependent targeted therapies have faced un-neglectable crises and challenges. Therefore, in this study, we systematically reviewed the most updated knowledge of Wnt/β-catenin signaling in cancers and relatively targeted therapies to generate a clearer and more accurate awareness of both the developmental stage and underlying limitations of Wnt/β-catenin-targeted therapies in cancers. Insights of this study will help readers better understand the roles of Wnt/β-catenin signaling in cancers and provide insights to acknowledge the current opportunities and challenges of targeting this signaling in cancers.

We describe a novel fabrication method that creates microporous, polymeric membranes that are either flat or contain controllable 3-dimensional shapes that, when populated with Caco-2 cells, mimic key aspects of the intestinal epithelium such as intestinal villi and tight junctions. The developed membranes can be integrated with microfluidic, multi-organ cell culture systems, providing access to both sides, apical and basolateral, of the 3D epithelial cell culture. Partial exposure of photoresist (SU-8) spun on silicon substrates creates flat membranes with micrometer-sized pores (0.5-4.0 μm) that--supported by posts--span across 50 μm deep microfluidic chambers that are 8 mm wide and 10 long. To create three-dimensional shapes the membranes were air dried over silicon pillars with aspect ratios of up to 4:1. Space that provides access to the underside of the shaped membranes can be created by isotropically etching the sacrificial silicon pillars with xenon difluoride. Depending on the size of the supporting posts and the pore sizes the overall porosity of the membranes ranged from 4.4 % to 25.3 %. The microfabricated membranes can be used for integrating barrier tissues such as the gastrointestinal tract epithelium, the lung epithelium, or other barrier tissues with multi-organ "body-on-a-chip" devices.

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Data normalization is essential for reliable output of quantitative real-time reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) assays, as the unsuitable choice of reference gene(s), whose expression might be influenced by exogenous treatments in plant tissues, could cause misinterpretation of results. To date, no systematic studies on reference genes have been performed in stressed Brassica napus. In this study, we investigated the expression variations of nine candidate reference genes in 40 samples of B. napus leaves subjected to various exogenous treatments. Parallel analyses by geNorm and NormFinder revealed that optimal reference genes differed across the different sets of samples. The best-ranked reference genes were PP2A and TIP41 for salt stress, TIP41 and ACT7 for heavy metal (Cr(6+)) stress, PP2A and UBC21 for drought stress, F-box and SAND for cold stress, F-box and ZNF for salicylic acid stress, TIP41, ACT7, and PP2A for methyl jasmonate stress, TIP41 and ACT7 for abscisic acid stress, and TIP41, UBC21, and PP2A for Sclerotinia sclerotiorum stress. Two newly employed reference genes, TIP41 and PP2A, showed better performances, suggesting their suitability in multiple conditions. To further validate the suitability of the reference genes, the expression patterns of BnWRKY40 and BnMKS1 were studied in parallel. This study is the first systematic analysis of reference gene selection for qRT-PCR normalization in B. napus, an agriculturally important crop, under different stress conditions. The results will contribute toward more accurate and widespread use of qRT-PCR in gene analysis of the genus Brassica.