Cited by 249Cell death mechanisms and regulationCancer-related Molecular PathwaysAutophagy in Disease and Therapy

An interconnected hierarchical model of cell death regulation by the BCL-2 family

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Chen, Hui-Chen, Kanai, Masayuki, Inoue-Yamauchi, Akane, Tu, Ho-Chou, Huang, Yafen, Ren, Decheng, Kim, Hyungjin, Takeda, Shugaku +7 more·2015·Nature Cell Biology

Abstract

Multidomain pro-apoptotic BAX and BAK, once activated, permeabilize mitochondria to trigger apoptosis, whereas anti-apoptotic BCL-2 members preserve mitochondrial integrity. The BH3-only molecules (BH3s) promote apoptosis by either activating BAX-BAK or inactivating anti-apoptotic members. Here, we present biochemical and genetic evidence that NOXA is a bona fide activator BH3. Using combinatorial gain-of-function and loss-of-function approaches in Bid(-/-)Bim(-/-)Puma(-/-)Noxa(-/-) and Bax(-/-)Bak(-/-) cells, we have constructed an interconnected hierarchical model that accommodates and explains how the intricate interplays between the BCL-2 members dictate cellular survival versus death. BID, BIM, PUMA and NOXA directly induce stepwise, bimodal activation of BAX-BAK. BCL-2, BCL-XL and MCL-1 inhibit both modes of BAX-BAK activation by sequestering activator BH3s and 'BH3-exposed' monomers of BAX-BAK, respectively. Furthermore, autoactivation of BAX and BAK can occur independently of activator BH3s through downregulation of BCL-2, BCL-XL and MCL-1. Our studies lay a foundation for targeting the BCL-2 family for treating diseases with dysregulated apoptosis.

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  • Overexpression of BH3-only sensitizers induces minimal apoptosis in cells lacking BID, BIM, PUMA, and NOXA, suggesting that BH3-only activators function downstream of BH3-only sensitizers.

    “However, overexpression of BH3-only sensitizers induces minimal apoptosis in cells lacking BID, BIM, PUMA, and NOXA [64], suggesting that BH3-only activators function downstream of BH3-only sensitizers.”
  • BAX and BAK can self-activate in the absence of anti-apoptotic BCL2 family members and pro-apoptotic BH3 proteins (according to a relatively slow kinetics).

    “This observation is in line with the notion that BAX and BAK can self-activate in the absence of anti-apoptotic BCL2 family members and pro-apoptotic BH3 proteins (according to a relatively slow kinetics) [64, 93].”
  • BID, BIM, PUMA, and NOXA share the ability to physically interact with the mitochondrial pool of BAX and/or BAK to promote conformational changes culminating with dissociation of the core and latch domains of BCL2 effectors.

    “BID, BIM, PUMA, and NOXA share the ability to physically (but transiently) interact with the mitochondrial pool of BAX and/or BAK (hence being known as “activators”) to promote a series of conformational changes [59, 64, 67, 71–74] culminating with the dissociation of the core and latch domains of BCL2 effectors [75–77].”
  • Most pro-survival BCL2 family members inhibit BAX and BAK by preventing their oligomerization and pore-forming activity either directly, upon physical sequestration at the OMM, or indirectly, following the sequestration of BH3-only activators.

    “Thus, most pro-survival BCL2 family members inhibit BAX and BAK by preventing their oligomerization and pore-forming activity either directly, upon physical sequestration at the OMM, or indirectly, following the sequestration of BH3-only activators [29, 64, 79, 110].”
  • Transformed cells lacking all major BH3 activators (BID, BIM, PUMA, and NOXA) can still undergo apoptosis in response to DNA-damaging agents or downregulation of BCL2, BCL-XL, and MCL1.

    “However, transformed cells lacking all major BH3 activators (i.e., BID, BIM, PUMA, and NOXA) can still undergo apoptosis in response to DNA-damaging agents or downregulation of BCL2, BCL-XL, and MCL1 [64].”

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Authors
Chen, H.-C., Kanai, M., Inoue-Yamauchi, A., Tu, H.-C., Huang, Y., Ren, D., Kim, H., Takeda, S., Reyna, D. E., Chan, P. M., Ganesan, Y. T., Liao, C.-P., Gavathiotis, E., Hsieh, J. J., & Cheng, E. H.
Affiliations
  • Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (US)
  • University of Chicago (US)
  • Stony Brook University (US)
  • Albert Einstein College of Medicine (US)
Corresponding author
Cheng, Emily H.
Venue
Nature Cell Biology
Published
2015-09-07
Volume
17
Issue
10
Pages
1270-1281
ISSN
  • 1465-7392 (ISSN-L)
  • 1476-4679
OpenAlex
W1810630981
Cited by
249
References
56
Citations by year
2026: 6 · 2025: 9 · 2024: 21 · 2023: 22 · 2022: 28 · 2021: 17 · 2020: 29 · 2019: 35 · 2018: 26 · 2017: 26 · 2016: 28 · 2015: 1
FWCI
11.72
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Nature Cell Biology (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
National Cancer Institute (R01CA178394, R01CA125562, P30CA008748, P30CA013330)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Cell death mechanisms and regulation
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Oncology › Cancer-related Molecular Pathways
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Autophagy in Disease and Therapy
Keywords
Bcl-2 family proteins, apoptosis regulation, Bax, Bak, Noxa, BH3-only proteins, mitochondrial membrane permeabilization, Bcl-2, Bcl-xL, Mcl-1, Bid, building information modeling, PUMA, cell death
MeSH terms
Bcl-2-Like Protein 11, Animals, Cells, Cultured, Embryo, Mammalian, Fibroblasts, Intestine, Small, Membrane Proteins, Mice, Inbred C57BL, Mitochondria, Models, Biological, Proto-Oncogene Proteins, Immunoblotting, Apoptosis, Mice, Knockout, Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2, Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction, Tumor Suppressor Proteins, RNA Interference, Cytochromes c, bcl-2 Homologous Antagonist-Killer Protein, Apoptosis Regulatory Proteins, BH3 Interacting Domain Death Agonist Protein, bcl-2-Associated X Protein

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