Mitochondrial integrity: preservation through Akt/Pim-1 kinase signaling in the cardiomyocyte

Abstract

The central role of mitochondria as mediators of cell survival is indisputable and gathering increasing attention as a focal point for interventional strategies to mitigate apoptotic cell death in the wake of cardiomyopathic injury. A legacy of signal transduction studies has proven that mitochondrial integrity can be enhanced by kinases involved in cell survival. Among the many survival signaling cascades under investigation, the wide-ranging impact of Akt upon mitochondrial biology is well known. However, despite years of investigation, emerging research continues to reveal new mechanisms governing the protective effects of Akt signaling in the context of cardiomyocyte mitochondria. This review focuses on two emerging pathways that mediate preservation of mitochondrial function downstream of Akt: hexokinase and Pim-1 kinase.

Keywords::

• Akt
• cardiomyocyte
• heart
• hexokinase
• kinase
• mitochondria
• Pim-1

Financial & competing interests disclosure

Mark A Sussman is the recipient of research funding from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and the National Aging Institute divisions of the National Institutes of Health, award numbers HL067245, HL085577, HL091102 and AG023071. The author has no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.