Apoptotic signaling cascades operating in poliovirus-infected cells.
The flaccid paralyses characteristic of poliomyelitis are a direct consequence of the infection of motor neurons with poliovirus (PV). In PV-infected mice, motor neurons die by apoptosis. However, the mechanisms by which PV induces cell death in neurons remain unclear. Analyses of the apoptotic pathways induced by PV infection in several cell lines have demonstrated that mitochondria play a key role in PV-induced apoptosis. Furthermore, mitochondrial dysfunction results from an imbalance between pro- and anti-apoptotic pathways. We present here an overview of the many studies of PV-induced apoptosis carried out in recent years and discuss the contribution of these studies to our understanding of poliomyelitis.
Blondel
Bruno
B
Biologie des Virus Enteriques, Institut Pasteur, 28 rue du Docteur Roux, 75724 Paris cedex 15, France. bblondel@pasteur.fr
Autret
Arnaud
A
Brisac
Cynthia
C
Martin-Latil
Sandra
S
Mousson
Laurence
L
Pelletier
Isabelle
I
Estaquier
Jerome
J
Colbere-Garapin
Florence
F
D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis; D006801:Humans; D017955:Poliovirus / Q000502:physiology*; D015398:Signal Transduction; D014779:Virus Replication