Polyamine effects on cell function: Possible central role of plasma membrane PI(4,5)P2.

The polyamines spermidine, spermine, and putrescine are intimately involved in and required for cell growth and proliferation. There are also multiple effects of polyamines on other cellular processes that seem not to be a result of changes in protein expression. It is a daunting task to classify and understand cellular effects of endogenous polyamines. There has been no central hypothesis how these effects can occur or how spermine and spermidine could be targeted to various signal transduction cascades. However, now there is evidence that multiple effects of endogenous polyamines on different cellular processes may involve plasma membrane PI(4,5)P(2) and recent evidence of how polyamines could be targeted to specific cellular functions.