title: Fragile hearts: new insights into translational control in cardiac muscle.
abstract: Current investigations focused on RNA-binding proteins in striated muscle, which provide a scenario whereby muscle function and development are governed by the interplay of post-transcriptional RNA regulation, including transcript localization, splicing, stability, and translational control. New data have recently emerged, linking the RNA-binding protein FXR1 to the translation of key cytoskeletal components such as talin and desmoplakin in heart muscle. These findings, together with a plethora of recent reports implicating RNA-binding proteins and their RNA targets in both basic aspects of muscle development and differentiation as well as heart disease and muscular dystrophies, point to a critical role of RNA-based regulatory mechanisms in muscle biology. Here we focus on FXR1, the striated muscle-specific member of the Fragile X family of RNA-binding proteins and discuss its newly reported cytoskeletal targets as well as potential implications for heart disease.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, the Sarver Molecular Cardiovascular Research Program, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85724. Electronic address: zarnescu@email.arizona.edu.
authors.forename: Daniela C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Zarnescu
authors.forename: Carol C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Gregorio
mesh_terms: D051180:Desmoplakins / Q000235:genetics; D051860:Fragile X Messenger Ribonucleoprotein 1 / Q000235:genetics*; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D006801:Humans; D008957:Models, Genetic; D009206:Myocardium / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure; D014176:Protein Biosynthesis; D016608:Talin / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D051180:Desmoplakins; D051860:Fragile X Messenger Ribonucleoprotein 1; D016608:Talin