Coupling cellular mitogenesis to apoptosis by designed biomolecules

Cellular signal transduction pathways transduce input signals to produce corresponding output effects, ensuring correct response to extracellular signals. Manipulation of components in signaling pathways will alter correlation of input signals to output effects. Here we report that by reconstructing the components in mitogenic and apoptotic signaling pathways, Ras, Raf, and caspase-3, we manipulated the cells to couple mitogenic signal input to apoptotic output. The reconstructed biomolecules that couple mitogenesis to apoptosis are designated as “mitogenesis coupled-apoptosis molecular device” (MCAMD). As mitogenesis in cancer cells is constitutively active, MCAMD may have potential applications for cancer gene therapy.