Encoding and decoding NF-κB nuclear dynamics

Abstract

The NF-κB signaling pathway is crucial for cellular responses to environmental factors. Several studies have tried to decipher the mechanism of cells utilizing this pathway for information transfer and accurately encoding extracellular information that is translated into unique transcriptional programs. This fine-tuned encoding is possible owing to the complex regulatory mechanisms in the NF-κB pathway and is relayed through the nuclear dynamics of the NF-κB transcription factor. The "message" is then decoded through transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulation leading to stimulus-dependent phenotypes. Here, we reviewed recent advances on how different environmental stimuli are encoded and decoded by cells to produce distinct transcriptional responses and the important analytical techniques used in NF-κB research.