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Procaspase-9 is attached to the mitochondrial outer membrane in the early stages of apoptosis

Cellular & Molecular Biology Letters volume 12, pages 509–522 (2007)Cite this article

Abstract

Procaspase-9 is the zymogen form of one of the apoptosis initiators, caspase-9. Its cellular location may differ depending on the cell type; it is found throughout the cytosol, although some of it may be associated with the mitochondria. Procaspase-9 relocates from the cytosol to the mitochondria shortly after the triggering of apoptosis in rat hepatocytes. We investigated whether the mitochondrial protein import machineries import procaspase-9. The combined results of protein import analyses, mitochondrial fractionation and protease treatments of intact and swollen mitochondria imply that procaspase-9 attaches to the outer surface of the mitochondrial outer membrane.

Abbreviations

DHFR:

dihidrofolate-reductase

MPP:

mitochondrial processing peptidase

OXA:

oxidase assembly complex

PK:

proteinase K

PMSF:

phenylmethyl sulfonyl fluoride

pSu9:

targeting sequence of subunit 9 of F0F1-ATPase

SAM:

sorting and assembly machinery

SDS-PAGE:

sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis

TIM:

translocase of the inner membrane

TOB:

topogenesis of the outer membrane

TOM:

translocase of the outer membrane

Try:

trypsin

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  1. Medical Faculty, Institute of Pathophysiology, University of Ljubljana, Zaloška 4, SI-1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia

    Irina Milisav & Dušan Šuput

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  1. Irina Milisav
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  2. Dušan Šuput
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Correspondence to Irina Milisav.

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Milisav, I., Šuput, D. Procaspase-9 is attached to the mitochondrial outer membrane in the early stages of apoptosis. Cell Mol Biol Lett 12, 509–522 (2007). https://doi.org/10.2478/s11658-007-0020-3

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Cellular & Molecular Biology Letters

ISSN: 1689-1392

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