title: Linking gene expression to mechanisms of toxicity.
abstract: Activation of gene expression is one of the earliest cellular responses to toxicity. However, our understanding of the biological and biochemical signals that activate these toxicant-responsive genes as well as the consequences of gene activation to survival of the organism remains sketchy. In this article, strategies that can be used to link changes in gene expression to biochemical mechanisms of toxicity are addressed using the hsp70 and grp78 genes as examples. The data indicate that activation of hsp70 is linked to changes in thiol-disulfide redox perturbations while grp78 activation may be caused by loss of calcium from the endoplasmic reticulum. Each gene is part of a discrete feedback regulated signaling pathway designed to protect cells against the toxic signals that activate gene expression.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, College of Medicine, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT, USA. jim.stevens@uvm.edu
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Stevens
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Halleck
authors.forename: R C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Bowes
authors.forename: Q M
authors.initials: QM
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: van de Water
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000091342:Endoplasmic Reticulum Chaperone BiP; D015870:Gene Expression; D018840:HSP70 Heat-Shock Proteins / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics; D015386:Hazardous Substances / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D015227:Lipid Peroxidation / Q000187:drug effects; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species; D014116:Toxicology
chemical_list: D000091342:Endoplasmic Reticulum Chaperone BiP; D018840:HSP70 Heat-Shock Proteins; C000717247:HSPA5 protein, human; D015386:Hazardous Substances; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species