The FoxO signature in protein breakdown

Under stress conditions mammalian cells activate compensatory mechanisms to survive and maintain cellular function. During catabolic conditions, such as low nutrients, systemic inflammation, cancer or infections, protein breakdown is enhanced and aminoacids are released from muscles to sustain liver gluconeogenesis and tissues protein synthesis. Proteolysis in muscle is orchestrated by a set of genes named atrophy-related genes. A system that is activated both in short and prolonged stress conditions is the family of Forkhead Box (Fox) O transcription factors. Here, we report that muscle-specific deletion of FoxO members resulted in protection from muscle loss because FoxO family is required for induction of autophagy-lysosome and ubiquitin-proteasome systems. Importantly, FoxOs are required for Akt activity but not for mTOR signalling underlining the concept that FoxOs are upstream mTOR for the control of protein breakdown when nutrients are lacking. Moreover, FoxO family controls the induction of critical genes belonging to several fundamental stress response pathways such as unfolded protein response, ROS detoxification and translational regulation. Finally, we identify a set of novel FoxO-dependent ubiquitin ligases including the recent discovered MUSA11 and a new one, which we named Specific of Muscle Atrophy and Regulated by Transcription (SMART). Our findings identify the critical role of FoxO in regulating a variety of genes belonging to pathways important for stress-response under catabolic conditions.

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Milan G, Romanello V, Pescatore F, Armani A, Paik JH, Frasson L, Seydel A, Zhao J, Abraham R, Goldberg AL, Blaauw B, DePinho RA, Sandri M