Caveolin proteins in signaling, oncogenic transformation and muscular dystrophy

In adult animals and humans, signal transduction maintains homeostasis. Whe n homeostatic mechanisms are interrupted, an illness or disease may ensue, Caveolae are plasma membrane specializations that contain the structural pr oteins caveolins, and appear to be important for normal signal transduction , The caveolin scaffolding domain interacts with several signaling molecule s, sequestering them in the absence of activating signals, and thereby redu cing the signal-to-noise ratio. Deletion and mutation of genes that encode caveolins is implicated in the pathogenesis of several human diseases. Down -regulation of caveolin-1 protein expression leads to deregulated signaling and consequently tumorigenesis, whereas naturally occurring dominant-negat ive mutations cause muscular dystrophy.