Articles publicats (Grup de Recerca en Estrès Cel·lular i Supervivència en Models Eucariotes)

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    Open Access
    Abnormal degradation of the neuronal stress-protective transcription factor HSF1 in Huntington’s disease
    (Nature, 2017) Gomez Pastor, Rocio; Burchfiel, Eileen T.; Neef, Daniel W.; Jaeger, Alex M.; Cabiscol Català, Elisa; McKinstry, Spencer U.; Doss, Argenia; Aballay, Alejandro; Lo, Donald C.; Akimov, Sergey S.; Ross, Christopher A.; Eroglu, Cagla; Thiele, Dennis J.
    Huntington’s Disease (HD) is a neurodegenerative disease caused by poly-glutamine expansion in the Htt protein, resulting in Htt misfolding and cell death. Expression of the cellular protein folding and pro-survival machinery by heat shock transcription factor 1 (HSF1) ameliorates biochemical and neurobiological defects caused by protein misfolding. We report that HSF1 is degraded in cells and mice expressing mutant Htt, in medium spiny neurons derived from human HD iPSCs and in brain samples from patients with HD. Mutant Htt increases CK2α′ kinase and Fbxw7 E3 ligase levels, phosphorylating HSF1 and promoting its proteasomal degradation. An HD mouse model heterozygous for CK2α′ shows increased HSF1 and chaperone levels, maintenance of striatal excitatory synapses, clearance of Htt aggregates and preserves body mass compared with HD mice homozygous for CK2α′. These results reveal a pathway that could be modulated to prevent neuronal dysfunction and muscle wasting caused by protein misfolding in HD.
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    Open Access
    Neuroprotection by neurotrophic factors and membrane depolarization is regulated by calmodulin kinase IV
    (American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 2008) Pérez García, María José; Gou Fàbregas, Myriam; Pablo Llavall, Yolanda de; Llovera i Tomàs, Marta; Comella i Carnicé, Joan Xavier; Soler i Tatché, Rosa Ma.
    Neurotrophic factors promote motoneuron (MN) survival through increased intracellular calcium (Ca(2+)) and regulation of the phosphatidylinositol (PI) 3-kinase/protein kinase B (PKB) pathway by calmodulin (CaM). Activation of the PI 3-kinase/PKB pathway is one of the well established mechanisms involved in MN survival. The Ca(2+)/CaM complex interacts with and modulates the functionality of a large number of proteins, including serine/threonine protein kinases such as Ca(2+)/CaM-dependent protein kinases (CaMKs). Using a primary culture of embryonic chicken spinal cord MNs, we investigated the role of CaMKIV in mediating this process. We cloned chicken CaMKIV and demonstrated its expression in purified MNs by means of reverse transcription-PCR, Western blot, and immunofluorescence. Using RNA interference, we show that endogenous CaMKIV mediates cell survival induced by neurotrophic factors or membrane depolarization. The survival effect is independent of CaMKIV kinase activity; however, CaMKIV functionality depends on the presence of Ca(2+)/CaM. Finally, CaMKIV associates to the p85 subunit of PI 3-kinase in a Ca(2+)-dependent manner, suggesting a role in regulating PI 3-kinase/PKB activation.
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    Open Access
    Mtl1 is required to activate general stress response through Tor1 and Ras2 inhibition under conditions of glucose starvation and oxidative stress
    (American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 2010) Petkova, Mima Ivanova; Pujol Carrión, Núria; Arroyo, Javier; Garcia-Cantalejo, J.; Torre Ruiz, M. A. de la
    Mtl1 is a member of the cell wall integrity (CWI) pathway of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, which functions as a cell wall sensor for oxidative stress. Genome-wide transcriptional analysis revealed a cluster of genes that were down-regulated in the absence of Mtl1. Many of these genes were potentially regulated by the general stress response factor Msn2/Msn4. In response to rapamycin, caffeine, glucose starvation and oxidative stress provoked by H(2)O(2), mtl1 presents a significant loss of viability as well as a deficiency in the transcriptional response mediated by Msn2/Msn4. The Mtl1 function was required (i) to induce ribosomal gene repression, (ii) to induce the general stress response driven by the transcription factor Msn2/Msn4, and (iii) to activate the CWI pathway in response to both glucose starvation and oxidative stress. We also detected higher cAMP levels in the mtl1 mutant than in wild type cells indicative of up-regulated RAS2-PKA activity. Disruption of TOR1, disruption of RAS2, or hyperactivation of Rho1 restored both the viability and the transcriptional function (both ribosomal and Msn2/Msn4-dependent gene expression) in the mtl1 mutant to almost wild type levels when cells were starved of glucose or stressed with H(2)O(2). Taking our results together, we propose an essential role for Mtl1 in signaling oxidative stress and quiescence to the CWI pathway and to the general stress response through Rho1 and the inhibition of either the TOR1 or RAS2 functions. These mechanisms would be required to allow cells to adapt to both oxidative and nutritional stresses.
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    Open Access
    Glutaredoxins Grx4 and Grx3 of Saccharomyces cerevisiae Play a Role in Actin Dynamics through Their Trx Domains, Which Contributes to Oxidative Stress Resistance
    (American Society for Microbiology, 2010) Pujol Carrión, Núria; Torre Ruiz, M. A. de la
    Grx3 and Grx4 are two monothiol glutaredoxins of Saccharomyces cerevisiae that have previously been characterized as regulators of Aft1 localization and therefore of iron homeostasis. In this study, we present data showing that both Grx3 and Grx4 have new roles in actin cytoskeleton remodeling and in cellular defenses against oxidative stress caused by reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation. The Grx4 protein plays a unique role in the maintenance of actin cable integrity, which is independent of its role in the transcriptional regulation of Aft1. Grx3 plays an additive and redundant role, in combination with Grx4, in the organization of the actin cytoskeleton, both under normal conditions and in response to external oxidative stress. Each Grx3 and Grx4 protein contains a thioredoxin domain sequence (Trx), followed by a glutaredoxin domain (Grx). We performed functional analyses of each of the two domains and characterized different functions for them. Each of the two Grx domains plays a role in ROS detoxification and cell viability. However, the Trx domain of each Grx4 and Grx3 protein acts independently of its respective Grx domain in a novel function that involves the polarization of the actin cytoskeleton, which also determines cell resistance against oxidative conditions. Finally, we present experimental evidence demonstrating that Grx4 behaves as an antioxidant protein increasing cell survival under conditions of oxidative stress.
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    Open Access
    The MAP Kinase Slt2 Is Involved in Vacuolar Function and Actin Remodeling in Saccharomyces cerevisiae Mutants Affected by Endogenous Oxidative Stress
    (American Society for Microbiology, 2013) Pujol Carrión, Núria; Petkova, Mima Ivanova; Serrano Endolz, Luis; Torre Ruiz, M. A. de la
    Oxidative stress causes transient actin cytoskeleton depolarization and also provokes vacuole fragmentation in wild-type cells. Under conditions of oxidative stress induced by hydrogen peroxide, the Slt2 protein is required to repolarize the actin cytoskeleton and to promote vacuole fusion. In this study, we show that grx3 grx4 and grx5 mutants are cellular models of endogenous oxidative stress. This stress is the result of alterations in iron homeostasis that lead to impairment of vacuolar function and also to disorganization of the actin cytoskeleton. Slt2 overexpression suppresses defects in vacuolar function and actin cytoskeleton organization in the grx3 grx4 mutant. Slt2 exerts this effect independently of the intracellular levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and of iron homeostasis. The deletion of SLT2 in the grx3 grx4 mutant results in synthetic lethality related to vacuolar function with substantial vacuole fragmentation. The observation that both Vps4 and Vps73 (two proteins related to vacuole sorting) suppress vacuole fragmentation and actin depolarization in the grx3 grx4 slt2 triple mutant strengthens the hypothesis that Slt2 plays a role in vacuole homeostasis related to actin dynamics. Here we show that in sod1, grx5, and grx3 grx4 slt2 mutants, all of which are affected by chronic oxidative stress, the overexpression of Slt2 favors vacuole fusion through a mechanism dependent on an active actin cytoskeleton.