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Microbiol. Mol. Biol. Rev., Mar 1997, 33-46, Vol 61, No. 1
P Anderson
All cells are constantly exposed to conflicting environment cues that
signal cell survival or cell death. Survival signals are delivered by
autocrine or paracrine factors that actively suppress a default death
pathway. In addition to survival factor withdrawal, cell death can be
triggered by environmental stresses such as heat, UV light, and
hyperosmolarity or by dedicated death receptors (e.g., FAS/APO-1 and tumor
necrosis factor [TNF] receptors) that are counterparts of growth factor or
survival receptors at the cell surface. One of the ways that cells
integrate conflicting exogenous stimuli is by phosphorylation (or
dephosphorylation) of cellular constituents by interacting cascades of
serine/threonine and tyrosine protein kinases (and phosphatases). Survival
factors (e.g., growth factors and mitogens) activate receptor tyrosine
kinases and selected mitogen-activated, cyclin-dependent, lipid-activated,
nucleic acid-dependent, and cyclic AMP-dependent kinases to promote cell
survival and proliferation, whereas environmental stress (or death factors
such as FAS/APO-1 ligand and TNF- alpha) activates different members of
these kinase families to inhibit cell growth and, under some circumstances,
promote apoptotic cell death. Because individual kinase cascades can
interact with one another, they are able to integrate conflicting exogenous
stimuli and provide a link between cell surface receptors and the
biochemical pathways leading to cell proliferation or cell death.
Copyright © 1997, American Society for Microbiology
Kinase cascades regulating entry into apoptosis
Division of Tumor Immunology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA.
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