1. Academic Validation
  2. Noxa, a BH3-only member of the Bcl-2 family and candidate mediator of p53-induced apoptosis

Noxa, a BH3-only member of the Bcl-2 family and candidate mediator of p53-induced apoptosis

  • Science. 2000 May 12;288(5468):1053-8. doi: 10.1126/science.288.5468.1053.
E Oda 1 R Ohki H Murasawa J Nemoto T Shibue T Yamashita T Tokino T Taniguchi N Tanaka
Affiliations

Affiliation

  • 1 Department of Immunology, Graduate School of Medicine and Faculty of Medicine, University of Tokyo, Hongo 7-3-1, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan.
Abstract

A critical function of tumor suppressor p53 is the induction of Apoptosis in cells exposed to noxious stresses. We report a previously unidentified pro-apoptotic gene, Noxa. Expression of Noxa induction in primary mouse cells exposed to x-ray irradiation was dependent on p53. Noxa encodes a Bcl-2 homology 3 (BH3)-only member of the Bcl-2 Family of proteins; this member contains the BH3 region but not Other BH domains. When ectopically expressed, Noxa underwent BH3 motif-dependent localization to mitochondria and interacted with anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 Family members, resulting in the activation of caspase-9. We also demonstrate that blocking the endogenous Noxa induction results in the suppression of Apoptosis. Noxa may thus represent a mediator of p53-dependent Apoptosis.

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