Copper homeostasis and cuproptosis in health and disease

🤖 Plain-English Summary

As an essential micronutrient, copper is required for a wide range of physiological processes in virtually all cell types. Here, we summarize our current knowledge regarding copper metabolism, copper-related disease, the characteristics of cuproptosis, and the mechanisms that regulate cuproptosis.

🔑 Key Findings

• Because the accumulation of intracellular copper can induce oxidative stress and perturbing cellular function, copper homeostasis is tightly regulated.
• Recent studies identified a novel copper-dependent form of cell death called cuproptosis, which is distinct from all other known pathways underlying cell death.
• Cuproptosis occurs via copper binding to lipoylated enzymes in the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, which leads to subsequent protein aggregation, proteotoxic stress, and ultimately cell death.

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