Figure 1. The biological roles of β-catenin in the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway.

This pathway has two states dependent upon the presence or absence of Wnt ligands. When Wnt ligands are absent, β-catenin is phosphorylated by the destruction complex and degraded. When Wnt ligands are present, β-catenin is not degraded and translocates to the nucleus and functions as a transcription factor.