One of the most important results of Wnt signaling and the elevated level of β-catenin in certain cell types is the maintenance of pluripotency. The rate of stem cells in the colon is for instance ensured by such accumulation of β-catenin, which can be stimulated by the Wnt pathway. High frequency peristaltic mechanical strains of the colon are also involved in the β-catenin dependent maintenance of homeostatic levels of colonic stem cells through processes of mechanotransduction. This feature is pathologically enhanced towards tumorigenic hyperproliferation in healthy cells compressed by pressure due genetically altered hyperproliferative tumorous cells.
In other cell types and developmental stages, β-catenin may promote differentiation, especially towards mesodermal cell lineages.