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Mitochondrial regulation pathways in the lens: pink1/parkin- and bnip3l-mediated mechanisms
Title
Mitochondrial regulation pathways in the lens: pink1/parkin- and bnip3l-mediated mechanisms.
Creator
Aktan, Kerem, Kantorow, Marc, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine, Department of Biomedical Science
Abstract/Description
The mitochondrion is the powerhouse of the cell. Therefore, it is critical to the homeostasis of the cell that populations of mitochondria that are damaged or in excess are degraded. The process of targeted elimination of damaged or excess mitochondria by autophagy is called mitophagy. In this report, analysis of the mitophagy regulators PINK1/PARKIN and BNIP3L and their roles are assessed in the lens. PARKIN, an E3 ubiquitin ligase, has been shown to play a role in directing damaged...
Show moreThe mitochondrion is the powerhouse of the cell. Therefore, it is critical to the homeostasis of the cell that populations of mitochondria that are damaged or in excess are degraded. The process of targeted elimination of damaged or excess mitochondria by autophagy is called mitophagy. In this report, analysis of the mitophagy regulators PINK1/PARKIN and BNIP3L and their roles are assessed in the lens. PARKIN, an E3 ubiquitin ligase, has been shown to play a role in directing damaged mitochondria for degradation. While BNIP3L, an outer mitochondrial membrane protein, increases in expression in response to excess mitochondria and organelle degradation during cellular differentiation. We have shown that PARKIN is both induced and translocates from the cytoplasm to the mitochondria in human epithelial lens cells upon oxidative stress exposure. In addition, our findings also show that overexpression of BNIP3L causes premature clearance of mitochondria and other organelles, while loss of BNIP3L results in lack of clearance. Prior to this work, PARKIN mediated mitophagy had not been shown to act as a protective cellular response to oxidative stress in the lens. This project also resulted in the novel finding that BNIP3L-mediated mitophagy mechanisms are required for targeted organelle degradation in the lens.
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Date Issued
2015
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004427, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004427
Subject Headings
Cellular signal transduction, Eye -- Diseases -- Etiology, Mitochondrial pathology, Mitophagy, Molecular chaperones, Oxidative stress -- Prevention, Protein folding
Format
Document (PDF)
Developmental and Protective Mechanisms of the Ocular Lens.
Title
Developmental and Protective Mechanisms of the Ocular Lens.
Creator
Chauss, Daniel C., Kantorow, Marc, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biomedical Science
Abstract/Description
The vertebrate eye lens functions to focus light onto the retina to produce vision. The lens is composed of an anterior monolayer of cuboidal epithelial cells that overlie a core of organelle free fiber cells. The lens develops and grows throughout life by the successive layering of lens fiber cells via their differentiation from lens epithelial cells. Lens developmental defect and damage to the lens are associated with cataract formation, an opacity of the lens that is a leading cause of...
Show moreThe vertebrate eye lens functions to focus light onto the retina to produce vision. The lens is composed of an anterior monolayer of cuboidal epithelial cells that overlie a core of organelle free fiber cells. The lens develops and grows throughout life by the successive layering of lens fiber cells via their differentiation from lens epithelial cells. Lens developmental defect and damage to the lens are associated with cataract formation, an opacity of the lens that is a leading cause of visual impairment worldwide. The only treatment to date for cataract is by surgery. Elucidating those molecules and mechanisms that regulate the development and lifelong protection of the lens is critical toward the development of future therapies to prevent or treat cataract. To determine those molecules and mechanisms that may be important for these lens requirements we employed high-throughput RNA sequencing of microdissected differentiation statespecific lens cells to identify an extensive range of transcripts encoding proteins expressed by these functionally distinct cell types. Using this data, we identified differentiation state-specific molecules that regulate mitochondrial populations between lens epithelial cells that require the maintenance of a functional population of mitochondria and lens fiber cells that must eliminate their mitochondria for their maturation. In addition, we discovered a novel mechanism for how lens epithelial cells clear apoptotic cell debris that could arise from damage to the lens and found that UVlight likely compromises this system. Moreover, the data herein provide a framework to determine novel lens cell differentiation state-specific mechanisms. Future studies are required to determine the requirements of the identified molecules and mechanisms during lens development, lens defense against damage, and cataract formation.
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Date Issued
2016
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004577
Subject Headings
Eye--Diseases--Etiology., Cell differentiation., Cellular signal transduction., Protein folding., Mitochondrial pathology., Cellular control mechanisms., Apoptosis., Oxidative stress--Prevention.
Format
Document (PDF)