Phosphorylation of eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2 mediates apoptosis in response to activation of the double-stranded RNA-dependent protein kinase.

The interferon-inducible, double-stranded (ds) RNA-dependent serine/threonine protein kinase (PKR) plays a role in viral pathogenesis, cell growth, and differentiation and is implicated as a tumor suppressor gene. Expression of a trans-dominant negative, catalytically inactive mutant PKR protected NIH3T3 cells from apoptosis in response to either treatment with tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF alpha), serum deprivation. In cells expressing mutant PKR, TNF alpha, but not dsRNA induced transcription from a nuclear factor kappa B-dependent promoter, demonstrating specificity for dsRNA in signaling through the PKR pathway. Serum or platelet-derived growth factor addition to serum-deprived mutant PKR-expressing cells induced transcription of the early response genes c-fos and c-jun, indicating that the immediate early response signaling was intact. Overexpression of wild-type PKR in a transient DNA transfection system was sufficient to induce apoptosis. TNF alpha-induced apoptosis correlated with increased phosphorylation of the alpha subunit of eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2 (eIF-2 alpha), the primary physiological substrate of the PKR. Furthermore, forced expression of a nonphosphorylatable S51A mutant eIF-2 alpha partially protected cells from TNF alpha-induced apoptosis, and expression of a S51D mutant eIF-2 alpha, a mutant that mimics phosphorylated eIF-2 alpha, was sufficient to induce apoptosis. Taken together, these studies identify a novel requirement for PKR in stress-induced apoptosis that is mediated through eIF-2 alpha phosphorylation.