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How to diSARM the executioner of axon degeneration

Nature Structural & Molecular Biology volume 28, pages 10–12 (2021)Cite this article

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The protein SARM1 is an executioner of axon degeneration through its NAD+ hydrolase activity. Three groups now report structures of human SARM1 in an inactive state and identify NAD+ as an allosteric inhibitor, illuminating an elegant mechanism of how SARM1 is activated at lower NAD+ levels and causes NAD+ collapse and axon degeneration.

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Fig. 1: Molecular mechanism for the regulation of SARM1 activity.
Fig. 2: The allosteric binding site for NAD+ in SARM1.

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Acknowledgements

L.T. thanks Oliver Hobert for critical reading of the manuscript. Research in the author’s laboratory is supported by NIH grant R35GM118093.

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  1. Department of Biological Sciences, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA

    Liang Tong

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  1. Liang Tong
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Correspondence to Liang Tong.

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Tong, L. How to diSARM the executioner of axon degeneration. Nat Struct Mol Biol 28, 10–12 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41594-020-00545-7

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