 Experimentally modified embryos that do not express this protein will fail to develop mesoderm and initiate gastrulation.During the blastula and gastrula stages, "Wnt" as well as BMP and FGF pathways will induce the antero-posterior axis formation, regulate the precise placement of the primitive streak (gastrulation and mesoderm formation) as well as the process of neurulation (central nervous system development).In Xenopus oocytes, β-catenin is initially equally localized to all regions of the egg, but it is targeted for ubiquitination and degradation by the β-catenin destruction complex.