title: A new genetic model for calcium induced autophagy and ER-stress in Drosophila photoreceptor cells.
abstract: Cytoplasmic Ca2+ overload is known to trigger autophagy and ER-stress. Furthermore, ER-stress and autophagy are commonly associated with degenerative pathologies, but their role in disease progression is still a matter of debate, in part, owing to limitations of existing animal model systems. The Drosophila eye is a widely used model system for studying neurodegenerative pathologies. Recently, we characterized the Drosophila protein, Calphotin, as a cytosolic immobile Ca2+ buffer, which participates in Ca2+ homeostasis in Drosophila photoreceptor cells. Exposure of calphotin hypomorph flies to continuous illumination, which induces Ca2+ influx into photoreceptor cells, resulted in severe Ca2+-dependent degeneration. Here we show that this degeneration is autophagy and ER-stress related. Our studies thus provide a new model in which genetic manipulations trigger changes in cellular Ca2+ distribution. This model constitutes a framework for further investigations into the link between cytosolic Ca2+, ER-stress and autophagy in human disorders and diseases.
authors: a Department of Medical Neurobiology ; Institute for Medical Research Israel-Canada (IMRIC) and the Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences (ELSC); Faculty of Medicine; The Hebrew University ; Jerusalem , Israel.
authors: Shirley
authors: S
authors: Weiss
authors: Baruch
authors: B
authors: Minke
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001343:Autophagy / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics; D002118:Calcium / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004330:Drosophila / Q000166:cytology* / Q000235:genetics; D059865:Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics; D008957:Models, Genetic; D017956:Photoreceptor Cells, Invertebrate / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000473:pathology*
chemical_list: D002118:Calcium
keywords: Drosophila; ER-stress; Transient receptor potential- TRP; autophagy; calcium homeostasis; calphotin; calphotin hypomorph- Cpn1%; calphotin- Cpn; dMoesin- Moe; photoreceptor cells