The non-canonical functions of the transcription factor STAT3 have been poorly studied in comparison to its canonical mechanisms of gene expression activation. Here, Köhler et al. put the spotlight on a novel unconventional repressing mechanism of STAT3 over the REDD1 gene, named DDIT4. These findings are crucial to expand the knowledge of the stress-induced short-lived REDD1 protein that inactivates mTOR and the consequences of this fine-tuned regulation in the context of pathological conditions such as cancer or neurodegenerative diseases.
Keywords: IL-6; JAK; REDD1; STAT1; STAT3; gene expression.
© 2023 The Authors. The FEBS Journal published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Federation of European Biochemical Societies.