The Wistar Institute, 3601 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, PA 19104, USA

Correspondence to: G G Maul, The Wistar Institute, 3601 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, PA 19104, USA E-mail: maul@wistar.upenn.edu

ND10, PML bodies or PODs have become the defining nuclear structure for a highly complex protein complement involved in cell activities such as aging, apoptosis, the cell cycle, stress response, hormone signaling, transcriptional regulation and development. ND10 are present in many but not all cell types and are not essential for cell survival. Here, we review the cellular proteins found in ND10, their few known interactions and their contribution to the ND10 structure per se and to functions elsewhere in the nucleus. The discrepancy between the functions of the ND10 proteins and the nonessential nature of the structure in which they are aggregated at their highest concentrations leads to the conclusion that the proteins function elsewhere. The regulated recruitment of specific proteins into ND10 as well as their controlled release upon external induced stress points to a regulated nuclear depot function for ND10. These nuclear depot functions seem important as nuclear defense against viral attack and other external insults. Oncogene (2001) 20, 7234-7242.

ND10; PML; Daxx; Sp100; nuclear bodies; protein interaction