Fis1, Bap31 and the kiss of death between mitochondria and endoplasmic reticulum

Abstract

Dynamic structural and functional liaisons between mitochondria and the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) support a wide range of cell functions, including the ability of the cell to kill itself by apoptosis. A new study in this issue of The EMBO Journal sheds light on how these interactions regulate Bax/Bak-driven cell death within the complex milieu of the cell, suggesting that mitochondria-ER dynamics can involve an unanticipated two-way communication in cell death, from mitochondria to ER and back again. © 2011 European Molecular Biology Organization | All Rights Reserved.