title: Bcl-2 overexpression blocks activation of the death protease CPP32/Yama/apopain.
abstract: The C. elegans gene product ced-9 inhibits programmed cell death by negatively regulating the death-mediating protease ced-3. The mammalian homolog of ced-9 is the oncoprotein Bcl-2. Overexpression of Bcl-2 spares mammalian and nematodal cells from dying and prevents ectopic cell death in ced-9 loss-of-function mutants. Although Bcl-2 has been shown to act as an antioxidant under certain conditions, additional functions have emerged from studies under low oxygen pressure. Here we show that Bcl-2 overexpression impairs activation of the interleukin-1beta converting enzyme-related death protease CPP32/Yama/apopain, the mammalian homolog of ced-3. When U937 monocytes undergo programmed cell death in response to tumor necrosis factor alpha, the inactive CPP32 precursor is cleaved into its active forms. As a consequence poly(ADP ribose) polymerase, a major substrate of CPP32, is faithfully cleaved into a 85 kD fragment. Bcl-2 overexpressing cells are protected from tumor necrosis factor alpha-induced death and display neither CPP32 maturation nor PARP cleavage. The inhibitory effect of Bcl-2 on CPP32 activation is indirect since no physical interaction between the two proteins could be detected. These results indicate that Bcl-2 neutralizes an unknown cellular activator of CPP32 to save cells from programmed cell death.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biochemistry, University of Fribourg, Switzerland.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Monney
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Otter
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Olivier
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Ravn
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Mirzasaleh
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Fellay
authors.forename: G G
authors.initials: GG
authors.lastname: Poirier
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Borner
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000235:genetics; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000166:cytology / Q000235:genetics; D053148:Caspase 3; D020169:Caspases; D002460:Cell Line; D003546:Cysteine Endopeptidases / Q000378:metabolism*; D004792:Enzyme Precursors / Q000378:metabolism*; D009000:Monocytes / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D004792:Enzyme Precursors; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D053148:Caspase 3; D020169:Caspases; D003546:Cysteine Endopeptidases