APOPTOSIS AS BARRIER TO AUTOIMMUNITY AND CANCER

The identification of the pro-apoptotic Bcl2-protein Bmf as specific regulator of B cell fitness and mediator of therapy-induced cell death (HDACi, glucocorticoids). Building on these results we discovered that Bmf and its relative Bim synergize in promoting programmed apoptosis in the developing embryo and in the adult immune system – the latter function efficiently preventing autoimmunity and cancer, both in and beyond the immune system.

Publications

Loss of the BH3-only protein Bmf impairs B cell homeostasis and accelerates γ irradiation–induced thymic lymphoma development

Verena Labi, Miriam Erlacher, Stephan Kiessling, Claudia Manzl, Anna Frenzel, Lorraine O'Reilly, Andreas Strasser, Andreas Villunger

Journal of Experimental Medicine, vol. 205(3), 2008 Feb 17, pp. 641-655

Puma cooperates with Bim, the rate-limiting BH3-only protein in cell death during lymphocyte development, in apoptosis induction

Miriam Erlacher, Verena Labi, Claudia Manzl, Günther Böck, Alexandar Tzankov, Georg Häcker, Ewa Michalak, Andreas Strasser, Andreas Villunger

Journal of Experimental Medicine, vol. 203(13), 2006 Nov 25, pp. 2939-2951

BH3-only proteins in cell death initiation, malignant disease and anticancer therapy.

V Labi, M Erlacher, S Kiessling, A Villunger

Cell Death & Differentiation, vol. 13(8), 2006 Jul 1, pp. 1325-1338

BH3-only proteins Puma and Bim are rate-limiting for γ-radiation– and glucocorticoid-induced apoptosis of lymphoid cells in vivo

Miriam Erlacher, Ewa M. Michalak, Priscilla N. Kelly, Verena Labi, Harald Niederegger, Leigh Coultas, Jerry M. Adams, Andreas Strasser, Andreas Villunger

Blood, vol. 106(13), 2005 Nov 15, pp. 4131-4138