Heat Shock Factor 2 Protects against Proteotoxicity by Maintaining Cell-Cell Adhesion (Cell Reports)

Joutsen et al. show that heat shock factor 2 (HSF2) is essential for cell survival during prolonged proteotoxicity. Lack of HSF2 leads to marked misregulation of cadherin superfamily genes and functional impairment of cell-cell adhesion. Cell-cell adhesion is found to be a key determinant of proteotoxic stress resistance.