Structure of the Fas/FADD complex: a conditional death domain complex mediating signaling by receptor clustering.

ABSTRACT: Death domain complexes are key protein arrangements in the regulation of various cellular signaling events. One of the most prominent death domain complexes first described in the initiation of apoptosis is formed by the transmembrane receptor Fas, the cytosolic adaptor protein FADD, and caspase-8 and is referred to as the Fas/FADD/caspase-8 death inducing signaling complex (DISC). The recent structure of the Fas/FADD death domain complex reveals how formation of this signaling platform can be stringently regulated utilizing only Fas receptor clustering to form a death domain network. This work reveals that an opening mechanism of Fas is needed to expose binding sites for the FADD death domain and sets the stage for a conditional interaction, which is characterized by weak interactions ada

SUBMITTER: Salvesen GS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2788920 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature