title: CASH, a novel caspase homologue with death effector domains.
abstract: CASP-8 and CASP-10, members of a cysteine protease family that participates in apoptosis, interact with MORT1/FADD, an adapter protein in the CD120a (p55 tumor necrosis factor receptor), and CD95 (Fas/Apo-1) death-inducing signaling pathways, through a shared N-terminal sequence motif, the death effector domain. We report cloning of two splice variants of a novel protein, CASH, that contain two N-terminal death effector domains and can bind through them to each other, to MORT1/FADD, to CASP-8, and to CASP-10. The unique C-terminal part of the longer variant shows marked sequence homology to the caspase protease region yet lacks several of the conserved caspase active site residues, suggesting that it is devoid of cysteine protease activity. Overexpression of the short CASH splice variant strongly inhibited cytotoxicity induction by CD120a and CD95. Expression of the longer variant, while inhibiting cytotoxicity in HeLa cells, had a marked cytocidal effect in 293 cells that could be shown to involve its protease homology region. The findings suggest that CASH acts as an attenuator and/or initiator in CD95 and CD120a signaling for cell death.
authors.affiliation: Department of Membrane Research and Biophysics, Weizmann Institute of Science, 76100 Rehovot, Israel.
authors.forename: Y V
authors.initials: YV
authors.lastname: Goltsev
authors.forename: A V
authors.initials: AV
authors.lastname: Kovalenko
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Arnold
authors.forename: E E
authors.initials: EE
authors.lastname: Varfolomeev
authors.forename: V M
authors.initials: VM
authors.lastname: Brodianskii
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Wallach
mesh_terms: D048868:Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D015703:Antigens, CD / Q000378:metabolism; D017209:Apoptosis; D053446:CASP8 and FADD-Like Apoptosis Regulating Protein; D002352:Carrier Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D020170:Caspase 1; D053455:Caspase 10; D020169:Caspases; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D003546:Cysteine Endopeptidases / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism; D053200:Fas-Associated Death Domain Protein; D006367:HeLa Cells; D006801:Humans; D007375:Interleukin-1 / Q000378:metabolism; D047908:Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; D051379:Mice; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D018124:Receptors, Tumor Necrosis Factor / Q000378:metabolism; D047888:Receptors, Tumor Necrosis Factor, Type I; D012441:Saccharomyces cerevisiae; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D014162:Transfection; D019014:fas Receptor / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D048868:Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing; D015703:Antigens, CD; D053446:CASP8 and FADD-Like Apoptosis Regulating Protein; C506386:CFLAR protein, human; D002352:Carrier Proteins; C506387:Cflar protein, mouse; C505533:FADD protein, human; C505534:Fadd protein, mouse; D053200:Fas-Associated Death Domain Protein; D007375:Interleukin-1; D047908:Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; D018124:Receptors, Tumor Necrosis Factor; D047888:Receptors, Tumor Necrosis Factor, Type I; D019014:fas Receptor; D053455:Caspase 10; D020169:Caspases; D003546:Cysteine Endopeptidases; C105036:interleukin 1beta-converting enzyme 2; D020170:Caspase 1