Emerging roles for microproteins as critical regulators of endoplasmic reticulum function and cellular homeostasis

Abstract

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is a multifunctional organelle essential for key cellular processes including protein synthesis, calcium homeostasis, and the cellular stress response. It is composed of distinct domains, such as the rough and smooth ER, as well as membrane regions that facilitate direct communication with other organelles, enabling its diverse functions. While many well-characterized ER proteins contribute to these processes, recent studies have revealed a previously underappreciated class of small proteins that play critical regulatory roles. Microproteins, typically under 100 amino acids in length, were historically overlooked due to size-based biases in genome annotation and often misannotated as noncoding RNAs. Advances in ribosome profiling, mass spectrometry, and computational approaches have now enabled the discovery of numerous previously unrecognized microproteins, significantly expanding our understanding of the proteome. While some ER-associated microproteins, such as phospholamban and sarcolipin, were identified decades ago, newly discovered microproteins share similar fundamental characteristics, underscoring the need to refine our understanding of the coding potential of the genome. Molecular studies have demonstrated that ER microproteins play essential roles in calcium regulation, ER stress response, organelle communication, and protein translocation. Moreover, growing evidence suggests that ER microproteins contribute to cellular homeostasis and are implicated in disease processes, including cardiovascular disease and cancer. This review examines the shared and unique functions of ER microproteins, their implications for health and disease, and their potential as therapeutic targets for conditions associated with ER dysfunction.