scholarly journals Leishmania major MPK7 Protein Kinase Activity Inhibits Intracellular Growth of the Pathogenic Amastigote Stage

2009 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 22-30 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miguel A. Morales ◽  
Pascale Pescher ◽  
Gerald F. Späth
Keyword(s):  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Kinase Activity ◽  
Leishmania Major ◽  
Fluorescent Protein ◽  
De Novo ◽  
Parasite Growth ◽  
Growth Defect ◽  
Protein Kinase Activity ◽  
Macrophage Infection ◽  
Infectious Cycle

ABSTRACT During the infectious cycle, protozoan parasites of the genus Leishmania undergo several adaptive differentiation steps that are induced by environmental factors and crucial for parasite infectivity. Genetic analyses of signaling proteins underlying Leishmania stage differentiation are often rendered difficult due to lethal null mutant phenotypes. Here we used a transgenic strategy to gain insight into the functions of the mitogen-activated Leishmania major protein kinases LmaMPK7 and LmaMPK10 in parasite virulence. We established L. major and Leishmania donovani lines expressing episomal green fluorescent protein (GFP)-LmaMPK7 and GFP-LmaMPK10 fusion proteins. The transgenic lines were normal in promastigote morphology, growth, and the ability to differentiate into metacyclic and amastigote stages. While parasites expressing GFP-LmaMPK10 showed normal infectivity by mouse footpad analysis and macrophage infection assays, GFP-LmaMPK7 transgenic parasites displayed a strong delay in lesion formation and reduced intracellular parasite growth. Significantly, the effects of GFP-LmaMPK7 on virulence and proliferation were due exclusively to protein kinase activity, as the overexpression of two kinase-dead mutants had no effect on parasite infectivity. GFP-LmaMPK7 transgenic L. donovani cells revealed a reversible, stage-specific growth defect in axenic amastigotes that was independent of cell death but linked to nonsynchronous growth arrest and a significant reduction of de novo protein biosynthesis. Our data suggest that LmaMPK7 protein kinase activity may be implicated in parasite growth control and thus relevant for the development of nonproliferating stages during the infectious cycle.

scholarly journals Novel Chemical Class of pUL97 Protein Kinase-Specific Inhibitors with Strong Anticytomegaloviral Activity

2004 ◽  
Vol 48 (11) ◽  
pp. 4154-4162 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Herget ◽  
Martina Freitag ◽  
Monika Morbitzer ◽  
Regina Kupfer ◽  
Thomas Stamminger ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Kinase Activity ◽  
Kinase Inhibitors ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Fluorescent Protein ◽  
Human Fibroblasts ◽  
Growth Factor Receptor ◽  
Protein Kinase Activity ◽  
Hcmv Replication

ABSTRACT Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is a major human pathogen frequently associated with life-threatening disease in immunosuppressed patients and newborns. The HCMV UL97-encoded protein kinase (pUL97) represents an important determinant of viral replication. Recent studies demonstrated that pUL97-specific kinase inhibitors are powerful tools for the control of HCMV replication. We present evidence that three related quinazoline compounds are potent inhibitors of the pUL97 kinase activity and block in vitro substrate phosphorylation, with 50% inhibitory concentrations (IC50s) between 30 and 170 nM. Replication of HCMV in primary human fibroblasts was suppressed with a high efficiency. The IC50s of these three quinazoline compounds (2.4 ± 0.4, 3.4 ± 0.6, and 3.9 ± 1.1 μM, respectively) were in the range of the IC50 of ganciclovir (1.2 ± 0.2 μM), as determined by the HCMV green fluorescent protein-based antiviral assay. Importantly, the quinazolines were demonstrated to have strong inhibitory effects against clinical HCMV isolates, including ganciclovir- and cidofovir-resistant virus variants. Moreover, in contrast to ganciclovir, the formation of resistance to the quinazolines was not observed. The mechanisms of action of these compounds were confirmed by kinetic analyses with infected cells. Quinazolines specifically inhibited viral early-late protein synthesis but had no effects at other stages of the replication cycle, such as viral entry, consistent with a blockage of the pUL97 function. In contrast to epithelial growth factor receptor inhibitors, quinazolines affected HCMV replication even when they were added hours after virus adsorption. Thus, our findings indicate that quinazolines are highly efficient inhibitors of HCMV replication in vitro by targeting pUL97 protein kinase activity.

scholarly journals Pak1 Protein Kinase Regulates Activation and Nuclear Localization of Snf1-Gal83 Protein Kinase

2004 ◽  
Vol 24 (18) ◽  
pp. 8255-8263 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristina Hedbacker ◽  
Seung-Pyo Hong ◽  
Marian Carlson
Keyword(s):  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Nuclear Localization ◽  
Kinase Activity ◽  
Fluorescent Protein ◽  
Protein Kinase Activity ◽  
Activation Loop ◽  
Glucose Limitation ◽  
Subunit Isoforms ◽  
Green Fluorescent ◽  
Amp Activated Protein Kinase

ABSTRACT Three kinases, Pak1, Tos3, and Elm1, activate Snf1 protein kinase in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. This cascade is conserved in mammals, where LKB1 activates AMP-activated protein kinase. We address the specificity of the activating kinases for the three forms of Snf1 protein kinase containing the β-subunit isoforms Gal83, Sip1, and Sip2. Pak1 is the most important kinase for activating Snf1-Gal83 in response to glucose limitation, but Elm1 also has a significant role; moreover, both Pak1 and Elm1 affect Snf1-Sip2. These findings exclude the possibility of a one-to-one correspondence between the activating kinases and the Snf1 complexes. We further identify a second, unexpected role for Pak1 in regulating Snf1-Gal83: the catalytic activity of Pak1 is required for the nuclear enrichment of Snf1-Gal83 in response to carbon stress. The nuclear enrichment of Snf1 fused to green fluorescent protein (GFP) depends on both Gal83 and Pak1 and is abolished by a mutation of the activation loop threonine; in contrast, the nuclear enrichment of Gal83-GFP occurs in a snf1Δ mutant and depends on Pak1 only when Snf1 is present. Snf1-Gal83 is the only form of the kinase that localizes to the nucleus. These findings, that Pak1 both activates Snf1-Gal83 and controls its nuclear localization, implicate Pak1 in regulating nuclear Snf1 protein kinase activity.

scholarly journals Uncoupled cell cycle without mitosis induced by a protein kinase inhibitor, K-252a.

1991 ◽  
Vol 115 (5) ◽  
pp. 1275-1282 ◽  
Author(s):  
T Usui ◽  
M Yoshida ◽  
K Abe ◽  
H Osada ◽  
K Isono ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cell Cycle ◽  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Dna Synthesis ◽  
Kinase Activity ◽  
Kinase Inhibitor ◽  
De Novo ◽  
S Phase ◽  
Continuous Treatment ◽  
Protein Kinase Activity

The staurosporine analogues, K-252a and RK-286C, were found to cause DNA re-replication in rat diploid fibroblasts (3Y1) without an intervening mitosis, producing tetraploid cells. Analysis of cells synchronized in early S phase in the presence of K-252a revealed that initiation of the second S phase required a lag period of 8 h after completion of the previous S phase. Reinitiation of DNA synthesis was inhibited by cycloheximide, actinomycin D, and serum deprivation, but not by Colcemid, suggesting that a functional G1 phase dependent on de novo synthesis of protein and RNA is essential for entry into the next S phase. In a src-transformed 3Y1 cell line, as well as other cell lines, giant cells containing polyploid nuclei with DNA contents of 16C to 32C were produced by continuous treatment with K-252a, indicating that the agent induced several rounds of the incomplete cell cycle without mitosis. Although the effective concentration of K-252a did not cause significant inhibition of affinity-purified p34cdc2 protein kinase activity in vitro, in vivo the full activation of p34cdc2 kinase during the G2/M was blocked by K-252a. On the other hand, the cyclic fluctuation of partially activated p34cdc2 kinase activity peaking in S phase still continued. These results suggest that a putative protein kinase(s) sensitive to K-252a plays an important role in the mechanism for preventing over-replication after completion of previous DNA synthesis. They also suggest that a periodic activation of p34cdc2 is required for S phases in the cell cycle without mitosis.

Phosphorylation-Mediated Assembly of a Semisynthetic Fluorescent Protein for Label-Free Detection of Protein Kinase Activity

2015 ◽  
Vol 87 (12) ◽  
pp. 6311-6318 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chao Yin ◽  
Ming Wang ◽  
Chunyang Lei ◽  
Zhen Wang ◽  
Pei Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Kinase Activity ◽  
Fluorescent Protein ◽  
Protein Kinase Activity ◽  
Label Free ◽  
Label Free Detection

scholarly journals Direct targeting of human cytomegalovirus protein kinase pUL97 by kinase inhibitors is a novel principle for antiviral therapy

2002 ◽  
Vol 83 (5) ◽  
pp. 1013-1023 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manfred Marschall ◽  
Matthias Stein-Gerlach ◽  
Martina Freitag ◽  
Regina Kupfer ◽  
Miriam van den Bogaard ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Antiviral Therapy ◽  
Virus Replication ◽  
Human Cytomegalovirus ◽  
Kinase Activity ◽  
Fluorescent Protein ◽  
High Sensitivity ◽  
Direct Result ◽  
Protein Kinase Activity

The protein kinase pUL97, encoded by human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), is an important determinant of virus replication. Recently, indolocarbazoles were identified as a class of substances that inhibit the pUL97 kinase activity in vitro. In parallel, it was shown that indolocarbazoles interfere with HCMV replication; however, the causal relationship between inhibition of pUL97 kinase activity and virus replication has not been clarified. Here evidence is provided that indolocarbazole-mediated inhibition of virus replication is a direct result of diminished pUL97 protein kinase activity. In cell culture infections, a strong and selective antiviral activity was measured with respect to several strains of HCMV in contrast with other related or non-related viruses. For fine quantification, recombinant HCMVs expressing green fluorescent protein were used, demonstrating the high sensitivity towards compounds NGIC-I and Gö6976. Interestingly, a ganciclovir-resistant virus mutant (UL97-M460I) showed increased sensitivity to both compounds. Supporting this concept, transfection experiments with cloned pUL97 revealed that ganciclovir-resistant mutants were characterized by reduced levels of autophosphorylation compared with wild-type and possessed particularly high sensitivity to indolocarbazoles. Moreover, the Epstein–Barr virus-encoded homologous kinase, BGLF4, which showed a similar pattern of autophosphorylation and ganciclovir phosphorylation activities, was not inhibited. Importantly, a cytomegalovirus deletion mutant, lacking a functional UL97 gene and showing a severe impairment of replication, was completely insensitive to indolocarbazoles. Thus, our findings indicate that a specific block in the activity of pUL97 is the critical step in indolocarbazole-mediated inhibition of virus replication and that pUL97 might be targeted very efficiently by a novel antiviral therapy.

Effect of Thrombin on Phosphorylation of Platelet Membrane Proteins

1976 ◽  
Vol 35 (03) ◽  
pp. 635-642 ◽  
Author(s):  
M Steiner
Keyword(s):  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Kinase Activity ◽  
Qualitative Change ◽  
Protein Kinase Activity ◽  
Protein Substrates ◽  
Phosphoprotein Phosphatase ◽  
Progressive Loss ◽  
Platelet Membranes ◽  
Endogenous Protein ◽  
Considerable Loss

SummaryThe effect of thrombin on the phosphorylating activity of platelet membranes was compared to that of trypsin. Preincubation of non-32P phosphorylated platelet membranes with or without either of these two enzymes resulted in a considerable loss of membrane protein kinase activity which was most severe when trypsin was used. Protein kinase activity and endogenous protein acceptors decreased in parallel. 32P-phosphorylated membranes showed a slow but progressive loss of label which was accelerated by trypsin. Thrombin under these conditions prevented the loss of 32P-phosphate. These results are interpreted to indicate a thrombin-induced destruction of a phosphoprotein phosphatase. The protein kinase activity of phosphorylated platelet membranes using endogenous or exogenous protein substrates showed a significant reduction compared to non-phosphorylated membranes suggesting a deactivation of protein kinase by phosphorylation of platelet membranes. Neither thrombin nor trypsin caused a qualitative change in the membrane polypeptides accepting 32P-phosphate but resulted in quantitative alterations of their ability to become phosphorylated.

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