Apoptosis, or programmed cell death, is a physiological form of cell suicide that critically regulates the development and homeostasis of the immune system. Defects in the removal of self-reactive or damaged lymphocytes are thought to lead to autoimmune disease and leukemia/lymphoma. Therefore, understanding the signaling pathways involved in lymphocyte apoptosis remains an important challenge. Mice doubly-deficient in Bax/Bak (DKO), two proapoptotic BCL-2 family members, have been generated and largely die in utero. DKO mouse embryonic fibroblasts or fetal-derived lymphocytes reconstituted into Rag-1-/- mice are strikingly resistant to apoptosis in response to a wide range of death stimuli, including signals specifically targeting the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). While originally shown to work by receiving activated BH3 proteins at mitochondria, preliminary studies strongly suggest that BAX/BAK play a second role in maintaining ER Ca2+ stores and controlling Ca2+ signaling between the ER and mitochondria. Based on these results, this proposal intends to understand how BAX/BAK control ER Ca2+ stores and what role this plays in their regulation of mitochondrial-dependent apoptosis. ? ? Specifically, the project aims to: 1) Define the contribution of ER-derived Ca2+ in cell death in fibroblasts, 2) Determine the mechanism by which proapoptotic BAX/BAK regulate Ca2+ signaling between ER and mitochondria, and 3) Determine how BAX/BAK deficiency affects Ca2+-dependent signaling in T lymphocytes. Further work will define the signaling pathways controlling cell death in the immune system to gain fundamental insight into the pathogenesis of autoimmunity and cancer. ? ? Dr. Scott Oakes, the Principal Investigator, is an M.D., who has completed residency training in anatomic pathology, and wishes to develop an independent research career focusing on the molecular pathways of apoptosis and how they relate to human disease. The sponsor, Dr. Stanley J. Korsmeyer, is a world-leader in the field of apoptosis with a strong record of training successful basic investigators. ? ?

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)
Type
Clinical Investigator Award (CIA) (K08)
Project #
5K08AI054650-02
Application #
6743759
Study Section
Allergy & Clinical Immunology-1 (AITC)
Program Officer
Prograis, Lawrence J
Project Start
2003-05-01
Project End
2008-04-30
Budget Start
2004-05-01
Budget End
2005-04-30
Support Year
2
Fiscal Year
2004
Total Cost
$117,720
Indirect Cost
Name
Brigham and Women's Hospital
Department
Type
DUNS #
030811269
City
Boston
State
MA
Country
United States
Zip Code
02115
Oakes, Scott A; Papa, Feroz R (2015) The role of endoplasmic reticulum stress in human pathology. Annu Rev Pathol 10:173-94
Austgen, Kathryn; Johnson, Emily T; Park, Tae-Ju et al. (2012) The adaptor protein CRK is a pro-apoptotic transducer of endoplasmic reticulum stress. Nat Cell Biol 14:87-92
Shore, Gordon C; Papa, Feroz R; Oakes, Scott A (2011) Signaling cell death from the endoplasmic reticulum stress response. Curr Opin Cell Biol 23:143-9
Reyes, Nichole A; Fisher, Jill K; Austgen, Kathryn et al. (2010) Blocking the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway preserves motor neuron viability and function in a mouse model of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. J Clin Invest 120:3673-9
Han, Dan; Lerner, Alana G; Vande Walle, Lieselotte et al. (2009) IRE1alpha kinase activation modes control alternate endoribonuclease outputs to determine divergent cell fates. Cell 138:562-75
Upton, John-Paul; Austgen, Kathryn; Nishino, Mari et al. (2008) Caspase-2 cleavage of BID is a critical apoptotic signal downstream of endoplasmic reticulum stress. Mol Cell Biol 28:3943-51
Han, Dan; Upton, John-Paul; Hagen, Andrew et al. (2008) A kinase inhibitor activates the IRE1alpha RNase to confer cytoprotection against ER stress. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 365:777-83
Oakes, Scott A; Lin, Stephen S; Bassik, Michael C (2006) The control of endoplasmic reticulum-initiated apoptosis by the BCL-2 family of proteins. Curr Mol Med 6:99-109
Oakes, Scott A; Scorrano, Luca; Opferman, Joseph T et al. (2005) Proapoptotic BAX and BAK regulate the type 1 inositol trisphosphate receptor and calcium leak from the endoplasmic reticulum. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 102:105-10