Open AccessDDX3X Sits at the Crossroads of Liquid–Liquid and Prionoid Phase Transitions Arbitrating Life and Death Cell Fate Decisions in Stressed Cells
Author(s) -
Parimal Samir,
ThirumalaDevi Kanneganti
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
dna and cell biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1557-7430
pISSN - 1044-5498
DOI - 10.1089/dna.2020.5616
Subject(s) - crosstalk , stress granule , inflammasome , biology , microbiology and biotechnology , cell fate determination , programmed cell death , innate immune system , immunology , immune system , translation (biology) , genetics , inflammation , transcription factor , apoptosis , gene , physics , messenger rna , optics
The crosstalk between cellular stress responses and innate immune signaling pathways remains poorly understood. Cells can respond to stressors by assembling stress granules that store 40S ribosomes, translation initiation factors, and mRNAs, and allow the cell to survive. Some stressors can activate the NLRP3 inflammasome, which leads to pyroptotic cell death. Stress granules and the NLRP3 inflammasome provide distinct cell fate choices to the cell. These complexes also involve distinct types of phase transitions-liquid-liquid phase separation for stress granules and prionoid phase transition for the NLRP3 inflammasome. We recently reported that DDX3X modulates this crosstalk by acting as a common essential factor for NLRP3 inflammasome activation and stress granule assembly. Here, we discuss the role of DDX3X in modulating the liquid-liquid phase separation and prionoid phase transition required for making cell fate decisions under stress conditions.