Hexokinases inhibit death receptor-dependent apoptosis on the mitochondria.

Death receptor-mediated apoptosis requires the mitochondrial apoptosis pathway in many mammalian cells. In response to death receptor signaling, the truncated BH3-only protein BID can activate the proapoptotic BCL-2 proteins BAX and BAK and trigger the permeabilization of the mitochondria. BAX and BAK are inhibited by prosurvival BCL-2 proteins through retrotranslocation from the mitochondria into the cytosol, but a specific resistance mechanism to truncated BID-dependent apoptosis is unknown.

Kill one or kill the many: interplay between mitophagy and apoptosis.

Mitochondria are key players of cellular metabolism, Ca homeostasis, and apoptosis. The functionality of mitochondria is tightly regulated, and dysfunctional mitochondria are removed via mitophagy, a specialized form of autophagy that is compromised in hereditary forms of Parkinson's disease. Through mitophagy, cells are able to cope with mitochondrial stress until the damage becomes too great, which leads to the activation of pro-apoptotic BCL-2 family proteins located on the outer mitochondrial membrane.

BAX Redistribution Induces Apoptosis Resistance and Selective Stress Sensitivity in Human HCC.

Cancer therapies induce differential cell responses, ranging from efficient cell death to complete stress resistance. The BCL-2 proteins BAX and BAK govern the cellular decision between survival and mitochondrial apoptosis. Therefore, the status of BAX/BAK regulation can predict the cellular apoptosis predisposition.

How two spins can thermalize a third spin.

We consider thermalization of a microscopic quantum system by interaction with a thermal bath. Our interest is the minimal size the bath can have while still being able to thermalize the system. Within a specific thermalization scheme, we show that a single spin 1/2 can be fully thermalized by interaction with a bath that consists of just two other spins 1/2.

Distance dependence of entanglement generation via a bosonic heat bath.

Within a generalized Caldeira-Leggett model, we analyze the conditions under which a bosonic heat bath can entangle two microscopic quantum systems at a distance r. We find that the attainable entanglement is extremely distance-sensitive. Significant entanglement can only be achieved if the systems are within a microscopic distance that is of order of the cutoff wavelength lambda of the system-bath interaction.