StemMACS™ IWP-4 is a selective small molecule inhibitor of Wnt signaling.
Background information
StemMACS™ IWP-4 inactivates the membrane-bound O-acyltransferase Porcupine (Porcn) which mediates palmitylation of Wnt proteins. Inhibition of Porcn prevents Wnt secretion and thus blocks activation of the Wnt signaling pathway. Consistent with the missing Wnt ligand, levels of phosphorylated Lrp6 and Dvl2 are decreased in the presence of IWP-4 and β-catenin cannot accumulate.
Applications
Published applications for IWP-4 include:
Differentiation of ES and iPS cells into cardiomyocytes1,2,3
Lian, X. et al. (2012) Robust cardiomyocyte differentiation from human pluripotent stem cells via temporal modulation of canonical Wnt signaling. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 109(27): E1848-1857
Lian et al. (2013) Directed cardiomyocyte differentiation from human pluripotent stem cells by modulating Wnt/β-catenin signaling under fully defined conditions. Nat. Protoc. 8(1): 162-175
Sequiera et al. (2013) A simple protocol for the generation of cardiomyocytes from human pluripotent stem cells. Methods Mol. Biol. 1307: 379-383
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