Year: 2014
Type: article
Abstract: Cardiac contraction requires continuous cycles of calcium release and reuptake between the sarcoplasm and sarcoplasmic reticulum. In vertebrate cardiomyocytes, re-sequestration of calcium to the sarcoplasmic reticulum is accomplished by the SERCA whose activity is dampened by interaction with the small integral membrane proteins, phospholamban and sarcolipin. In a recent report published in Science, Magny et al identify 2 small peptides in Drosophila encoded in a putative long noncoding RNA that buffers calcium reuptake by sarco/endoplasmic reticulum Ca(2+)-ATPase 2a in a similar manner to sarco/endoplasmic reticulum Ca(2+)-ATPase 2a regulation by phospholamban and sarcolipin. These findings demonstrate that regulation of Ca(2+)-ATPases by small transmembrane peptides is a conserved and ancient strategy. Furthermore, this study highlights the possibility that there may be many undiscovered small peptides encoded within putative long non-coding RNAs that regulate important biological pathways.
Source: Circulation Research
Institution: The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
Language: English
Subfield: Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W2109938799