PML regulates apoptosis at endoplasmic reticulum by modulating calcium release

The promyelocytic leukemia (PML) tumor suppressor is a pleiotropic modulator of apoptosis. However, the molecular basis for such a diverse proapoptotic role is currently unknown. We show that extranuclear Pml was specifically enriched at the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and at the mitochondria-associated membranes, signaling domains involved in ER-to-mitochondria calcium ion (Ca(2+)) transport and in induction of apoptosis. We found Pml in complexes of large molecular size with the inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor (IP(3)R), protein kinase Akt, and protein phosphatase 2a (PP2a). Pml was essential for Akt- and PP2a-dependent modulation of IP(3)R phosphorylation and in turn for IP(3)R-mediated Ca(2+) release from ER. Our findings provide a mechanistic explanation for the pleiotropic role of Pml in apoptosis and identify a pharmacological target for the modulation of Ca(2+) signals.     

A direct repeat is a hotspot for large-scale deletion of human mitochondrial DNA

Kearns-Sayre syndrome (KSS) and progressive external ophthalmoplegia (PEO) are related neuromuscular disorders characterized by ocular myopathy and ophthalmoplegia. Almost all patients with KSS and about half with PEO harbor large deletions in their mitochondrial genomes. The deletions differ in both size and location, except for one, 5 kilobases long, that is found in more than one-third of all patients examined. This common deletion was found to be flanked by a perfect 13-base pair direct repeat in the normal mitochondrial genome. This result suggests that homologous recombination deleting large regions of intervening mitochondrial DNA, which previously had been observed only in lower eukaryotes and plants, operates in mammalian mitochondrial genomes as well, and is at least one cause of the deletions found in these two related mitochondrial myopathies.     

Protein kinase C beta and prolyl isomerase 1 regulate mitochondrial effects of the life-span determinant p66Shc

The 66-kilodalton isoform of the growth factor adapter Shc (p66Shc) translates oxidative damage into cell death by acting as reactive oxygen species (ROS) producer within mitochondria. However, the signaling link between cellular stress and mitochondrial proapoptotic activity of p66Shc was not known. We demonstrate that protein kinase C beta, activated by oxidative conditions in the cell, induces phosphorylation of p66Shc and triggers mitochondrial accumulation of the protein after it is recognized by the prolyl isomerase Pin1. Once imported, p66Shc causes alterations of mitochondrial Ca2+ responses and three-dimensional structure, thus inducing apoptosis. These data identify a signaling route that activates an apoptotic inducer shortening the life span and could be a potential target of pharmacological approaches to inhibit aging.     

Spatially explicit correlates of plant functional traits inform landscape patterns of resource quality

Landscape Ecology - Spatially explicit correlates of foliar elemental, stoichiometric, and phytochemical (ESP) traits represent links to landscape patterns of resource quality. We investigate...