Signaling cell death from the endoplasmic reticulum stress response

Abstract

Inability to meet protein folding demands within the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) activates the unfolded protein response (UPR), a signaling pathway with both adaptive and apoptotic outputs. While some secretory cell types have a remarkable ability to increase protein folding capacity, their upper limits can be reached when pathological conditions overwhelm the fidelity and/or output of the secretory pathway. Irremediable 'ER stress' induces apoptosis and contributes to cell loss in several common human diseases, including type 2 diabetes and neurodegeneration. Researchers have begun to elucidate the molecular switches that determine when ER stress is too great to repair and the signals that are then sent from the UPR to execute the cell.

Figure 1. Connections from the UPR to the Mitochondrial Apoptotic Pathway

Under excessive ER stress, the ER transmembrane sensors IRE1α and PERK send signals through the BCL-2 family of proteins to activate the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway. In response to unfolded proteins, IRE1α oligomerizes and induces endonucleolytic decay of hundreds of ER-localized mRNAs, depleting ER protein folding components and leading to worsening ER stress. Phosphorylated IRE1α also recruits TNF receptor-associated factor 2 (TRAF2) and activates apoptosis signaling kinase 1 (ASK1) and its downstream target c-Jun NH₂-terminal kinase (JNK). JNK then activates pro-apoptotic BIM and inhibits anti-apoptotic BCL-2. These conditions result in dimerization of PERK and activation of its kinase domain to phosphorylate eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2α (eIF2α), which causes selective translation of activating transcription factor-4 (ATF4). ATF4 upregulates expression of the CHOP/GADD153 transcription factor, which inhibits the gene encoding anti-apoptotic BCL-2 while inducing expression of pro-apoptotic BIM. ER stress also promotes p53-dependent transcriptional upregulation of Noxa and Puma, two additional pro-apoptotic BH3-only proteins. Furthermore, high levels of UPR signaling induce initiator caspase-2 to proteolytically cleave and activate pro-apoptotic BID upstream of the mitochondrion. In addition to antagonizing pro-survival BCL-2 members, cleaved BID, BIM and PUMA activate Bax and/or Bak. Hence, in response to excessive UPR signaling, the balance of BCL-2 family proteins shifts in the direction of apoptosis and leads to the oligomerization of BAX and BAK, two multi-domain pro-apoptotic BCL-2 family proteins that then drive the permeabilization of the outer mitochondrial membrane, apoptosome formation and activation of executioner caspases such as Caspase-3. Figure adapted with permission from the Journal of Cell Science [58].