Review Article

Nuclear Transport: A Switch for the Oxidative Stress—Signaling Circuit?

Table 1

Redox-sensitive cellular targets in eukaryotic cells. Components that alter their activity and/or nucleocytoplasmic distribution when ROS concentrations increase are listed. See text for details.

Component or processEffect of ROS

Signaling proteins, transcriptional regulators
JNK, MAPKActivation
p38, MAPKActivation, nuclear translocation
ERK1/2, MAPKActivation, nuclear accumulation
PI3 kinase (some isoforms)Activation, changes in nucleocytoplasmic distribution
5′-AMP activated kinaseInhibition, nuclear accumulation; possibly by reduced nuclear export via Crm1
Human insulin receptor kinase activityActivation
Src family kinasesActivation
EGFRNuclear translocation; DNA repair
Protein tyrosine phosphatasesInactivation
PTENNuclear accumulation; association with p53
STAT3Nuclear translocation
NF-κB, transcription factorNuclear accumulation; transcription
FoxO transcription factorsNuclear translocation (i.e., FOXO1, FOXO3a, and FOXO4)
yAP-1, yeast transcription factorNuclear translocation
Msn2p, Msn4p, yeast transcription factorsNuclear translocation, transcription
CREBPhosphorylation, nuclear translocation
Nrf2Nuclear accumulation
HMGB1Cytoplasmic translocation
HuR, RNA-binding proteinRelocation to cytoplasm, accumulation in stress granules

Nuclear transport apparatus
Classical nuclear importInhibition
Crm1-dependent nuclear exportInhibition
Ran, small GTPase; Gsp1 in S. cerevisiae Relocation to cytoplasm upon severe oxidative stress
Importin-α1, adaptor for classical nuclear importAccumulation in nuclei, accumulation in cytoplasmic stress granules
Crm1, nuclear exporterAccumulation at nuclear envelope
CAS, exporter for importin-αNuclear accumulation
Multiple nucleoporins located at different positions within the nuclear pore complex: Nup358, Nup214, Nup88, Nup62, Nup153, Nup50, Nup98, and othersChanges in the association with nuclear envelope; altered nucleocytoplasmic distribution; degradation upon severe stress, in some cases mediated by caspases.