Mitochondria express several nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subtypes to control various pathways of apoptosis induction

Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor-Mediated Protection of the Rat Heart Exposed to Ischemia Reperfusion

“…We initially focused the present study on the α7 subtype of nAChR due to its central role in mediating the antiinflammatory effects of cholinergic stimulation (38,47) (reviewed in [34]). The presence of α7nAChRs in myocytes and coronary vessels of the heart (10) and published reports localizing these receptors to mitochondria suggest a role beyond an inflammatory one (11,29). Herein, we identified α7nAChRs in rat heart homogenates, in cultured primary neonatal rat ventricular myocytes and in a human cardiomyocyte cell line.…”

Mitochondrial Hormone Receptors - an Emerging Field of Signaling in the Cell’s Powerhouse

“…In these tissues, the heteropentameric subtypes α7β2, α4β2 and, to a minor extent, α3β2 were detected, whereas in the lung, the α3β4 receptor subtype prevailed [24]. The nicotinic receptors were reported to be associated with the outer mitochondrial membrane and to be involved in the regulation of apoptosis, partially in a protective way.…”

“…In liver and brain, several nicotinic acetylcholine receptors were reported to be mitochondrially localized [24][25][26]. In these tissues, the heteropentameric subtypes α7β2, α4β2 and, to a minor extent, α3β2 were detected, whereas in the lung, the α3β4 receptor subtype prevailed [24].…”

Weight of evidence evaluation of a network of adverse outcome pathways linking activation of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor in honey bees to colony death

“…Although the nAChR is conserved across vertebrates and invertebrates, the diverse composition and assembly of α-(containing two adjacent cysteine residues important in ACh binding) and non α-(lacking the cysteine residues) subunits confer diverse functional architecture and, therefore, toxicological responses (Jones and Sattelle, 2010). Interestingly, in mammals, nAChRs have been shown to be expressed in the outer membranes of mitochondria, with subtypes having tissue-specific locations Gergalova et al, 2014;Kalashnyk et al, 2012;Lykhmus et al, 2014). For example, in mice, brain and liver mitochondria typically express α7β2 and α4β2 nAChRs, whereas lung predominantly express α3β2 nAChRs .…”

“…In mammals, nAChRs have been identified on the mitochondrial outer membrane, providing plausibility that perturbation of the nAChR by a chemical stressor could lead to impacts on the mitochondria Gergalova et al, 2014;Kalashnyk et al, 2012;Lykhmus et al, 2014). Further, studies with both honey bees and bumble bees (Bombus terrestris) demonstrate adverse impacts on mitochondria when exposed to nAChR agonists (Moffat et al, 2015;Nicodemo et al, 2014).…”