Caveolins as Regulators of Stress Adaptation

Abstract

Caveolins have been recognized over the past few decades as key regulators of cell physiology. They are ubiquitously expressed and regulate a number of processes that ultimately impact efficiency of cellular processes. Though not critical to life, they are central to stress adaptation in a number of organs. The following review will focus specifically on the role of caveolin in stress adaptation in the heart, brain, and eye, three organs that are susceptible to acute and chronic stress and that show as well declining function with age. In addition, we consider some novel molecular mechanisms that may account for this stress adaptation and also offer potential to drive the future of caveolin research.

Fig. 1.

Caveolin has a critical role in maintaining cell survival via regulation of multiple cellular sites, including the membrane and mitochondria, as well as negative aspects—loss of caveolin expression can lead to cell death.