AMPK opens the door to organelle memory and longevity

Nutrient sensors serve as sentinels of cellular energy status, relaying metabolic information to effectors that reprogram gene expression. Zhou et al. identified an AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK)-NUP50 axis through which AMPK stabilizes the nucleoporin NUP50 to activate transcriptional programs promoting lipid catabolism and longevity. This redefines the nuclear pore complex (NPC) as a dynamic hormetic effector coupling energy sensing to transcriptional control.