The Parkinson's disease protein DJ-1 is neuroprotective due to cysteine-sulfinic acid-driven mitochondrial localization.
Wilson, M.A., Miller, D.W., Ahmad, R., McLendon, C., Bandyopadhyay, S., Baptista, M.J., Ringe, D., Petsko, G.A., Cookson, M.R.(2004) Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 101: 9103-9108
- PubMed: 15181200 
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0402959101
- Primary Citation of Related Structures:  
1SOA - PubMed Abstract: 
Loss-of-function DJ-1 mutations can cause early-onset Parkinson's disease. The function of DJ-1 is unknown, but an acidic isoform accumulates after oxidative stress, leading to the suggestion that DJ-1 is protective under these conditions. We addressed whether this represents a posttranslational modification at cysteine residues by systematically mutating cysteine residues in human DJ-1. WT or C53A DJ-1 was readily oxidized in cultured cells, generating a pI 5.8 isoform, but an artificial C106A mutant was not. We observed a cysteine-sulfinic acid at C106 in crystalline DJ-1 but no modification of C53 or C46. Oxidation of DJ-1 was promoted by the crystallization procedure. In addition, oxidation-induced mitochondrial relocalization of DJ-1 and protection against cell death were abrogated in C106A but not C53A or C46A. We suggest that DJ-1 protects against neuronal death, and that this is signaled by acidification of the key cysteine residue, C106.
Organizational Affiliation: 
Laboratory of Neurogenetics, National Institute on Aging, 9000 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20892-1589, USA.