scholarly journals Translational Control in Plasmodium and Toxoplasma Parasites

2012 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 161-167 ◽  
Author(s):  
Min Zhang ◽  
Bradley R. Joyce ◽  
William J. Sullivan ◽  
Victor Nussenzweig
Keyword(s):  
Translational Control ◽  
Life Cycles ◽  
Translation Initiation Factor ◽  
Initiation Factor ◽  
Control Of Gene Expression ◽  
Α Subunit ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Eukaryotic Translation ◽  
Precise Control ◽  
Eif2α Phosphorylation

ABSTRACT The life cycles of apicomplexan parasites such as Plasmodium spp. and Toxoplasma gondii are complex, consisting of proliferative and latent stages within multiple hosts. Dramatic transformations take place during the cycles, and they demand precise control of gene expression at all levels, including translation. This review focuses on the mechanisms that regulate translational control in Plasmodium and Toxoplasma , with a particular emphasis on the phosphorylation of the α subunit of eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2 (eIF2α). Phosphorylation of eIF2α (eIF2α∼P) is a conserved mechanism that eukaryotic cells use to repress global protein synthesis while enhancing gene-specific translation of a subset of mRNAs. Elevated levels of eIF2α∼P have been observed during latent stages in both Toxoplasma and Plasmodium , indicating that translational control plays a role in maintaining dormancy. Parasite-specific eIF2α kinases and phosphatases are also required for proper developmental transitions and adaptation to cellular stresses encountered during the life cycle. Identification of small-molecule inhibitors of apicomplexan eIF2α kinases may selectively interfere with parasite translational control and lead to the development of new therapies to treat malaria and toxoplasmosis.

scholarly journals Phosphorylation of eIF2α at Serine 51 Is an Important Determinant of Cell Survival and Adaptation to Glucose Deficiency

2010 ◽  
Vol 21 (18) ◽  
pp. 3220-3231 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hala Muaddi ◽  
Mithu Majumder ◽  
Philippos Peidis ◽  
Andreas I. Papadakis ◽  
Martin Holcik ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cell Survival ◽  
Biological Response ◽  
Translation Initiation Factor ◽  
Initiation Factor ◽  
Α Subunit ◽  
Eukaryotic Translation ◽  
Life And Death ◽  
Eif2α Phosphorylation ◽  
Apoptosis Protein ◽  
Eukaryotic Translation Initiation

Various forms of stress induce pathways that converge on the phosphorylation of the alpha (α) subunit of eukaryotic translation initiation factor eIF2 at serine 51 (S51), a modification that results in a global inhibition of protein synthesis. In many cases eIF2α phosphorylation is a biological response that facilitates cells to cope with stressful environments. Glucose deficiency, an important form of stress, is associated with an induction of apoptosis. Herein, we demonstrate that eIF2α phosphorylation is a key step in maintaining a balance between the life and death of a glucose-deficient cell. That is, eIF2α phosphorylation acts as a molecular switch that shifts cells from a proapoptotic to a cytoprotective state in response to prolonged glucose deficiency. This adaptation process is associated with the timely expression of proteins and activation of pathways with significant contributions to cell survival and adaptation including the X-linked inhibitor of apoptosis protein (XIAP). We also show that among the eIF2α kinases GCN2 plays a proapoptotic role whereas PERK and PKR play a cytoprotective one in response to glucose deficiency. Our data demonstrate that eIF2α phosphorylation is a significant determinant of survival and adaptation of glucose-deficient cells with possible important implications in biological processes that interfere with glucose metabolism.

scholarly journals IRE1α-Dependent Decay of CReP/Ppp1r15b mRNA Increases Eukaryotic Initiation Factor 2α Phosphorylation and Suppresses Protein Synthesis

2015 ◽  
Vol 35 (16) ◽  
pp. 2761-2770 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jae-Seon So ◽  
Sungyun Cho ◽  
Sang-Hyun Min ◽  
Scot R. Kimball ◽  
Ann-Hwee Lee
Keyword(s):  
Protein Synthesis ◽  
Er Stress ◽  
Translational Control ◽  
Translation Initiation Factor ◽  
Initiation Factor ◽  
Regulatory Subunit ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Eukaryotic Translation ◽  
Eif2α Phosphorylation ◽  
The Unfolded Protein Response

The unfolded protein response (UPR) regulates endoplasmic reticulum (ER) homeostasis and protects cells from ER stress. IRE1α is a central regulator of the UPR that activates the transcription factor XBP1s through an unconventional splicing mechanism using its endoribonuclease activity. IRE1α also cleaves certain mRNAs containing XBP1-like secondary structures to promote the degradation of these mRNAs, a process known as regulated IRE1α-dependent decay (RIDD). We show here that the mRNA of CReP/Ppp1r15b, a regulatory subunit of eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2α (eIF2α) phosphatase, is a RIDD substrate. eIF2α plays a central role in the integrated stress response by mediating the translational attenuation to decrease the stress level in the cell. CReP expression was markedly suppressed in XBP1-deficient mice livers due to hyperactivated IRE1α. Decreased CReP expression caused the induction of eIF2α phosphorylation and the attenuation of protein synthesis in XBP1-deficient livers. ER stress also suppressed CReP expression in an IRE1α-dependent manner, which increased eIF2α phosphorylation and consequently attenuated protein synthesis. Taken together, the results of our study reveal a novel function of IRE1α in the regulation of eIF2α phosphorylation and the translational control.

scholarly journals Snf1 Promotes Phosphorylation of the α Subunit of Eukaryotic Translation Initiation Factor 2 by Activating Gcn2 and Inhibiting Phosphatases Glc7 and Sit4

2010 ◽  
Vol 30 (12) ◽  
pp. 2862-2873 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vera Cherkasova ◽  
Hongfang Qiu ◽  
Alan G. Hinnebusch
Keyword(s):  
Translation Initiation ◽  
Translation Initiation Factor ◽  
Initiation Factor ◽  
Activation Loop ◽  
Α Subunit ◽  
Eukaryotic Translation ◽  
Eif2α Phosphorylation ◽  
Initiation Factor 2 ◽  
Eukaryotic Translation Initiation ◽  
Translation Initiation Factor 2

ABSTRACT Snf1 is the ortholog of mammalian AMP-activated kinase and is responsible for activation of glucose-repressed genes at low glucose levels in budding yeast. We show that Snf1 promotes the formation of phosphorylated α subunit of eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2 (eIF2α-P), a regulator of general and gene-specific translation, by stimulating the function of eIF2α kinase Gcn2 during histidine starvation of glucose-grown cells. Thus, eliminating Snf1 or mutating its activation loop lowers Gcn2 kinase activity, reducing the autophosphorylation of Thr-882 in the Gcn2 activation loop, and decreases eIF2α-P levels in starved cells. Consistently, eliminating Reg1, a negative regulator of Snf1, provokes Snf1-dependent hyperphosphorylation of both Thr-882 and eIF2α. Interestingly, Snf1 also promotes eIF2α phosphorylation in the nonpreferred carbon source galactose, but this occurs by inhibition of protein phosphatase 1α (PP1α; Glc7) and the PP2A-like enzyme Sit4, rather than activation of Gcn2. Both Glc7 and Sit4 physically interact with eIF2α in cell extracts, supporting their direct roles as eIF2α phosphatases. Our results show that Snf1 modulates the level of eIF2α phosphorylation by different mechanisms, depending on the kind of nutrient deprivation existing in cells.

scholarly journals Control of α Subunit of Eukaryotic Translation Initiation Factor 2 (eIF2α) Phosphorylation by the Human Papillomavirus Type 18 E6 Oncoprotein: Implications for eIF2α-Dependent Gene Expression and Cell Death

2004 ◽  
Vol 24 (8) ◽  
pp. 3415-3429 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shirin Kazemi ◽  
Stavroula Papadopoulou ◽  
Suiyang Li ◽  
Qiaozhu Su ◽  
Shuo Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Protein Synthesis ◽  
Translation Initiation Factor ◽  
Initiation Factor ◽  
Α Subunit ◽  
Eukaryotic Translation ◽  
Eif2α Phosphorylation ◽  
E6 Oncoprotein ◽  
Initiation Factor 2 ◽  
Eukaryotic Translation Initiation ◽  
Translation Initiation Factor 2

ABSTRACT Phosphorylation of the α subunit of eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2 (eIF2α) at serine 51 inhibits protein synthesis in cells subjected to various forms of stress including virus infection. The human papillomavirus (HPV) E6 oncoprotein contributes to virus-induced pathogenicity through multiple mechanisms including the inhibition of apoptosis and the blockade of interferon (IFN) action. We have investigated a possible functional relationship between the E6 oncoprotein and eIF2α phosphorylation by an inducible-dimerization form of the IFN-inducible protein kinase PKR. Herein, we demonstrate that HPV type 18 E6 protein synthesis is rapidly repressed upon eIF2α phosphorylation caused by the conditional activation of the kinase. The remainder of E6, however, can rescue cells from PKR-mediated inhibition of protein synthesis and induction of apoptosis. E6 physically associates with GADD34/PP1 holophosphatase complex, which mediates translational recovery, and facilitates eIF2α dephosphorylation. Inhibition of eIF2α phosphorylation by E6 mitigates eIF2α-dependent responses to transcription and translation of proapoptotic genes. These findings demonstrate, for the first time, a role of the oncogenic E6 in apoptotic signaling induced by PKR and eIF2α phosphorylation. The functional interaction between E6 and the eIF2α phosphorylation pathway may have important implications for HPV infection and associated pathogenesis.

scholarly journals Caspase-mediated cleavage of eukaryotic translation initiation factor subunit 2α

1999 ◽  
Vol 342 (1) ◽  
pp. 65-70 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shinya SATOH ◽  
Makoto HIJIKATA ◽  
Hiroshi HANDA ◽  
Kunitada SHIMOTOHNO
Keyword(s):  
Protein Synthesis ◽  
Translation Initiation ◽  
Caspase 3 ◽  
Translation Initiation Factor ◽  
Initiation Factor ◽  
Eukaryotic Translation Initiation Factor ◽  
Α Subunit ◽  
Eukaryotic Translation ◽  
Initiation Of Translation ◽  
Eukaryotic Translation Initiation

Eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2α (eIF-2α), a target molecule of the interferon-inducible double-stranded-RNA-dependent protein kinase (PKR), was cleaved in apoptotic Saos-2 cells on treatment with poly(I)˙poly(C) or tumour necrosis factor α. This cleavage occurred with a time course similar to that of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase, a well-known caspase substrate. In addition, eIF-2α was cleaved by recombinant active caspase-3 in vitro. By site-directed mutagenesis, the cleavage site was mapped to an Ala-Glu-Val-Asp300 ↓ Gly301 sequence located in the C-terminal portion of eIF-2α. PKR phosphorylates eIF-2α on Ser51, resulting in the suppression of protein synthesis. PKR-mediated translational suppression was repressed when the C-terminally cleaved product of eIF-2α was overexpressed in Saos-2 cells, even though PKR can phosphorylate this cleaved product. These results suggest that caspase-3 or related protease(s) can modulate the efficiency of protein synthesis by cleaving the α subunit of eIF-2, a key component in the initiation of translation.

scholarly journals Focus on Translation Initiation of the HIV-1 mRNAs

2018 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 101 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sylvain de Breyne ◽  
Théophile Ohlmann
Keyword(s):  
Translation Initiation ◽  
Translational Control ◽  
Translation Initiation Factor ◽  
Initiation Factor ◽  
Cellular Proteins ◽  
Internal Ribosome Entry ◽  
Eukaryotic Translation ◽  
Cellular Environment ◽  
Key Steps ◽  
Hiv 1

To replicate and disseminate, viruses need to manipulate and modify the cellular machinery for their own benefit. We are interested in translation, which is one of the key steps of gene expression and viruses that have developed several strategies to hijack the ribosomal complex. The type 1 human immunodeficiency virus is a good paradigm to understand the great diversity of translational control. Indeed, scanning, leaky scanning, internal ribosome entry sites, and adenosine methylation are used by ribosomes to translate spliced and unspliced HIV-1 mRNAs, and some require specific cellular factors, such as the DDX3 helicase, that mediate mRNA export and translation. In addition, some viral and cellular proteins, including the HIV-1 Tat protein, also regulate protein synthesis through targeting the protein kinase PKR, which once activated, is able to phosphorylate the eukaryotic translation initiation factor eIF2α, which results in the inhibition of cellular mRNAs translation. Finally, the infection alters the integrity of several cellular proteins, including initiation factors, that directly or indirectly regulates translation events. In this review, we will provide a global overview of the current situation of how the HIV-1 mRNAs interact with the host cellular environment to produce viral proteins.

scholarly journals uS3/Rps3 controls fidelity of translation termination and programmed stop codon readthrough in co-operation with eIF3

2019 ◽  
Vol 47 (21) ◽  
pp. 11326-11343 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristýna Poncová ◽  
Susan Wagner ◽  
Myrte Esmeralda Jansen ◽  
Petra Beznosková ◽  
Stanislava Gunišová ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Translational Control ◽  
Stop Codon ◽  
Translation Termination ◽  
Translation Initiation Factor ◽  
Initiation Factor ◽  
Eukaryotic Translation ◽  
C Terminus ◽  
Context Specific ◽  
Stop Codon Readthrough

Abstract Ribosome was long considered as a critical yet passive player in protein synthesis. Only recently the role of its basic components, ribosomal RNAs and proteins, in translational control has begun to emerge. Here we examined function of the small ribosomal protein uS3/Rps3, earlier shown to interact with eukaryotic translation initiation factor eIF3, in termination. We identified two residues in consecutive helices occurring in the mRNA entry pore, whose mutations to the opposite charge either reduced (K108E) or increased (R116D) stop codon readthrough. Whereas the latter increased overall levels of eIF3-containing terminating ribosomes in heavy polysomes in vivo indicating slower termination rates, the former specifically reduced eIF3 amounts in termination complexes. Combining these two mutations with the readthrough-reducing mutations at the extreme C-terminus of the a/Tif32 subunit of eIF3 either suppressed (R116D) or exacerbated (K108E) the readthrough phenotypes, and partially corrected or exacerbated the defects in the composition of termination complexes. In addition, we found that K108 affects efficiency of termination in the termination context-specific manner by promoting incorporation of readthrough-inducing tRNAs. Together with the multiple binding sites that we identified between these two proteins, we suggest that Rps3 and eIF3 closely co-operate to control translation termination and stop codon readthrough.

scholarly journals Dual Role for Hsc70 in the Biogenesis and Regulation of the Heme-Regulated Kinase of the α Subunit of Eukaryotic Translation Initiation Factor 2

1999 ◽  
Vol 19 (9) ◽  
pp. 5861-5871 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sheri Uma ◽  
Vanitha Thulasiraman ◽  
Robert L. Matts
Keyword(s):  
Heat Shock ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
De Novo ◽  
Clofibric Acid ◽  
Translation Initiation Factor ◽  
Initiation Factor ◽  
Α Subunit ◽  
Eukaryotic Translation ◽  
Initiation Factor 2 ◽  
Reticulocyte Lysate

ABSTRACT The heme-regulated kinase of the α subunit of eukaryotic initiation factor 2 (HRI) is activated in rabbit reticulocyte lysate (RRL) in response to a number of environmental conditions, including heme deficiency, heat shock, and oxidative stress. Activation of HRI causes an arrest of initiation of protein synthesis. Recently, we have demonstrated that the heat shock cognate protein Hsc70 negatively modulates the activation of HRI in RRL in response to these environmental conditions. Hsc70 is also known to be a critical component of the Hsp90 chaperone machinery in RRL, which plays an obligatory role for HRI to acquire and maintain a conformation that is competent to activate. Using de novo-synthesized HRI in synchronized pulse-chase translations, we have examined the role of Hsc70 in the regulation of HRI biogenesis and activation. Like Hsp90, Hsc70 interacted with nascent HRI and HRI that was matured to a state which was competent to undergo stimulus-induced activation (mature-competent HRI). Interaction of HRI with Hsc70 was required for the transformation of HRI, as the Hsc70 antagonist clofibric acid inhibited the folding of HRI into a mature-competent conformation. Unlike Hsp90, Hsc70 also interacted with transformed HRI. Clofibric acid disrupted the interaction of Hsc70 with transformed HRI that had been matured and transformed in the absence of the drug. Disruption of Hsc70 interaction with transformed HRI in heme-deficient RRL resulted in its hyperactivation. Furthermore, activation of HRI in response to heat shock or denatured proteins also resulted in a similar blockage of Hsc70 interaction with transformed HRI. These results indicate that Hsc70 is required for the folding and transformation of HRI into an active kinase but is subsequently required to negatively attenuate the activation of transformed HRI.

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