title: Bcl-2-regulated calcium signals as common mediators of both apoptosis and autophagy.
abstract: The calcium ion, a major intracellular second messenger, is a known mediator of apoptosis and is regulated by the antiapoptotic protein Bcl-2. A paper by Høyer-Hasen et al. (2007) in the current issue of Molecular Cell indicates that calcium also mediates the induction of macroautophagy in a Bcl-2 regulated fashion and identifies a signaling pathway through which calcium exerts its action. These intriguing findings provoke speculation as to how a cell decides to undergo either apoptosis or macroautophagy in response to calcium signals.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Case Western Reserve University and University Hospitals of Cleveland, Cleveland, OH 44106, USA.
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Swerdlow
authors.forename: Clark W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Distelhorst
mesh_terms: D055372:AMP-Activated Protein Kinases; D017209:Apoptosis; D001343:Autophagy; D020013:Calcium Signaling; D017871:Calcium-Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinases / Q000378:metabolism; D004789:Enzyme Activation; D006801:Humans; D009097:Multienzyme Complexes / Q000378:metabolism; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases / Q000378:metabolism; D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2 / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D009097:Multienzyme Complexes; D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases; D017871:Calcium-Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinases; D055372:AMP-Activated Protein Kinases