The MKK7 inhibitor peptide GADD45β-I attenuates ER stress-induced mitochondrial dysfunction in HT22 cells: Involvement of JNK-Wnt pathway.

JNK, a member of the mitogen activated protein kinases (MAPKs) superfamily, plays a key role in cell death in many neurological disorders, but systemic inhibition of JNK has detrimental side effects. JNK can be regulated by two direct upstream kinases: MAPK kinase 4 (MKK4) and MAPK kinase 7 (MKK7). Here, we investigated the effect of GADD45β-I, a recently designed cell-permeable inhibitor peptide for MKK7, on endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress-induced cytotoxicity in neuronal HT22 cells.