title: A balance between Raf-1 and Fas expression sets the pace of erythroid differentiation.
abstract: Normal erythropoiesis critically depends on the balance between the renewal of precursor cells and their differentiation. If the renewal phase is shortened, the decrease in the precursor pool results in anemia; conversely, impaired differentiation increases the number of proliferating progenitors and the potential risk of leukemic transformation. Using gene ablation, we have discovered 2 self-sustaining signal transduction loops that antagonize each other and regulate erythroid progenitor proliferation and differentiation, respectively. We identify Raf-1 as the main activator of the MEK/ERK cascade and as the key molecule in maintaining progenitor proliferation. Differentiation, in contrast, is mediated by Fas via the activation of both the ASK1/JNK/p38 module and the caspase cascade. The point of convergence between the 2 cascades is activated ERK, which positively feeds back on the proliferation pathway by maintaining the expression of Raf-1, while inhibiting the expression of Fas and therefore differentiation. In turn, Fas, once expressed, antagonizes proliferation by exerting a negative feedback on ERK activation and Raf-1 expression. Simultaneously, Fas-mediated caspase activation precipitates differentiation. These results identify Raf-1 and Fas as the key molecules whose expression finely tunes erythropoiesis and the extent of ERK activation as the switch that tips the balance between them.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Division of Gynecological Endocrinology and Reproductive Medicine, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Cristina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Rubiolo
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Piazzolla
authors.forename: Katrin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Meissl
authors.forename: Hartmut
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Beug
authors.forename: Johannes C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Huber
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kolbus
authors.forename: Manuela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Baccarini
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D020169:Caspases / Q000378:metabolism; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000187:drug effects; D004900:Erythroblasts / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects*; D048049:Extracellular Signal-Regulated MAP Kinases / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000378:metabolism; D005419:Flavonoids / Q000494:pharmacology; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D019463:Mice, Inbred MRL lpr; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D019908:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-raf / Q000235:genetics* / Q000494:pharmacology*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods; D013329:Structure-Activity Relationship; D019014:fas Receptor / Q000235:genetics* / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: C491899:Fas protein, mouse; D005419:Flavonoids; D019014:fas Receptor; D019908:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-raf; D048049:Extracellular Signal-Regulated MAP Kinases; D020169:Caspases; C093973:2-(2-amino-3-methoxyphenyl)-4H-1-benzopyran-4-one