30 years of StAR: Anniversary Collection
The Editorial Board of Journal of Endocrinology is developing a collection of articles to celebrate the 30-year anniversary since the publication of the cloning and naming of the Steroidogenic Acute Regulatory Protein (StAR).
Led by Associate Editors Professor Barbara Clark and Professor Ernesto Podesta, and Guest Editor Professor Douglas Stocco, this collection will provide researchers with a comprehensive update on what we have learned over the last 30 years on the mechanisms for StAR transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulation and StAR function.
"The year 2024 marks 30 years since publication of the cloning and naming of the Steroidogenic Acute Regulatory Protein (StAR). This finding opened a flood gate of research that advanced our understanding of tropic hormone-regulated adrenal and reproductive physiology and disorders associated with loss of steroid production. An unanticipated role for StAR in mitochondrial cholesterol transport in non-steroidogenic cells; eg, neuronal, cardiac, and liver has opened new possibilities for targeting StAR and modulating mitochondria cholesterol levels in disorders such as neuropathies, atherosclerosis and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease. This collection of original research and review articles highlights that the field remains active and much remains to be learned about StAR-dependent cholesterol transfer at the mitochondria and the impact on mitochondrial function in steroidogenic and non-steroidogenic cells. "
Barbara J Clark, Associate Editor
"This Anniversary collection highlights the contribution that the Steroidogenic Acute Regulatory Protein (StAR) has made in our understanding of the control of steroid hormone production in steroidogenic cells. 30 years ago the StAR protein was cloned and sequenced and, when expressed in steroidogenic cells, shown to increase steroid production in the complete absence of external stimulation. Shortly thereafter it was demonstrated that mutations in the StAR gene caused the potentially lethal condition known as lipoid congenital adrenal hyperplasia which results in the complete loss of steroid synthesis in afflicted newborns. For these reasons it was concluded that the StAR protein is an indispensable component in steroid hormone biosynthesis. This finding transformed the field and lead to a rapid growth in publications on StAR which is captured here."
Douglas M Stocco, Guest Editor
The editors also welcome submissions of original research and reviews for inclusion in this collection.
Please submit to Journal of Endocrinology stating in your cover letter that you wish for your article to be considered for this special collection. Alternatively, please email the editorial office joe@bioscientifica.com for further information.
Collection Editors
Barbara J Clark, Associate Editor
University of Louisville School of Medicine
KY, USA
Ernesto J Podesta, Associate Editor
University of Buenos Aires,
Argentina
Douglas M Stocco, Guest Editor
Texas Tech Health Center,
TX, USA
Published Articles:
A STAR for the ages: a thirty-year historical perspective of the role of transcription factors in the regulation of steroidogenic acute regulatory gene expression
Robert S. Viger, Marie France Bouchard, and Jacques J. Tremblay
Specific cellular microenvironments for spatiotemporal regulation of StAR and steroid synthesis
Ana Fernando Castillo, Cecilia Poderoso, Paula Mariana Maloberti, Fabiana Cornejo Maciel, María Mercedes Mori Sequeiros Garcia, Ulises Daniel Orlando, Pablo Mele, Yanina Benzo, Melina Andrea Dattilo, Jesica Prada, Luciano Quevedo, Matías Belluno, Cristina Paz, and Ernesto Jorge Podesta
Differential regulation of STARD1, STARD4 and STARD6 in the human ovary
Nawal A Yahya, Steven King, Bo Shi, Aisha Shaaban, Nicole E Whitfield, Chunmei Yan, Richard J Kordus, Gail F Whitman-Elia, and Holly A LaVoie
Clinical spectrum of human STAR variants and their genotype-phenotype correlation
Emre Murat Altinkilic, Philipp Augsburger, Amit V. Pandey, and Christa Flueck
