Abstract
Crosstalk of parkin and Ret in dopaminergic neurons.
Highlights
Recent genetic and functional studies have revealed striking similarities in the protein networks and molecular mechanisms altered in cancer and Parkinson’s disease, as illustrated here for the converging signaling pathways of parkin and Ret [1]
We could show in three different Ret-deficient mouse lines that substantia nigra dopaminergic neurons die progressively with age, suggesting a cell-autonomous maintenance function of Ret in these neurons [4, 5]
Recently we could show that Ret is tightly linked to the protein network altered in Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients and crosstalks directly with proteins like the redox-dependent molecular chaperone and oncogene DJ-1 and the E3 ubiquitin protein ligase and tumor suppressor protein parkin [5, 6]
Summary
Recent genetic and functional studies have revealed striking similarities in the protein networks and molecular mechanisms altered in cancer and Parkinson’s disease, as illustrated here for the converging signaling pathways of parkin and Ret [1]. Ret/GDNF signaling has been shown to have many important functions in the mammalian body, including affecting the survival of midbrain dopaminergic neurons of the substantia nigra, which preferentially die in Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients [2].
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