Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Kim H
PROVIDER: S-EPMC3163439 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Nov
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
Kim Hyungjin H Tu Ho-Chou HC Ren Decheng D Takeuchi Osamu O Jeffers John R JR Zambetti Gerard P GP Hsieh James J-D JJ Cheng Emily H-Y EH
Molecular cell 20091101 3
While activation of BAX/BAK by BH3-only molecules (BH3s) is essential for mitochondrial apoptosis, the underlying mechanisms remain unsettled. Here we demonstrate that BAX undergoes stepwise structural reorganization leading to mitochondrial targeting and homo-oligomerization. The alpha1 helix of BAX keeps the alpha9 helix engaged in the dimerization pocket, rendering BAX as a monomer in cytosol. The activator BH3s, tBID/BIM/PUMA, attack and expose the alpha1 helix of BAX, resulting in secondary ...[more]