β-Catenin Overexpression in the Metanephric Mesenchyme Leads to Renal Dysplasia Genesis via Cell-Autonomous and Non–Cell-Autonomous Mechanisms

Renal dysplasia, a developmental disorder characterized by defective ureteric branching morphogenesis and nephrogenesis, ranks as one of the major causes of renal failure among the pediatric population. Herein, we demonstrate that the levels of activated β-catenin are elevated in the nuclei of ureteric, stromal, and mesenchymal cells within dysplastic human kidney tissue. By using a conditional mouse model of mesenchymal β-catenin …