Nuclear inositides: inconsistent consistencies

It is now clear that phosphoinositides, which play a major role in the regulation of a variety of cellular processes in the cytoplasm, are found within the nucleus. Their role in this subcellular compartment is still contentious: however, data has suggested that nuclear inositides generate substrates, such as PtdIns(4,5)P2, utilised by a number of nuclear signalling pathways: for example, nuclear phospholipase C and the PtdIns 3-kinase cascade. There is also evidence that PtdIns(4,5)P2 may play a role in the localisation and regulation of a number of nuclear proteins such as the BAF complex, which is involved in the regulation of chromatin structure. Although the presence of nuclear inositides has been demonstrated in a number of different cell types, suggesting that it is ubiquitous, there are many inconsistencies within the literature concerning the locations and isotypes of enzymes that are involved in their regulation and in the potential second messengers which are generated by them. This review aims to highlight some of these inconsistencies in order to focus on areas that need further characterisation.