scholarly journals Novel members of the mitogen-activated protein kinase activator family in Xenopus laevis

1993 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 5738-5748
Author(s):  
B M Yashar ◽  
C Kelley ◽  
K Yee ◽  
B Errede ◽  
L I Zon

Mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinases comprise an evolutionarily conserved family of proteins that includes at least three vertebrate protein kinases (p42, p44, and p55 MAPK) and five yeast protein kinases (SPK1, MPK1, HOG1, FUS3, and KSS1). Members of this family are activated by a variety of extracellular agents that influence cellular proliferation and differentiation. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, there are multiple physiologically distinct MAP kinase activation pathways composed of structurally related kinases. The recently cloned vertebrate MAP kinase activators are structurally related to MAP kinase activators in these yeast pathways. These similarities suggest that homologous kinase cascades are utilized for signal transduction in many, if not all, eukaryotes. We have identified additional members of the MAP kinase activator family in Xenopus laevis by a polymerase chain reaction-based analysis of embryonic cDNAs. One of the clones identified (XMEK2) encodes a unique predicted protein kinase that is similar to the previously reported activator (MAPKK) in X. laevis. XMEK2, a highly expressed maternal mRNA, is developmentally regulated during embryogenesis and expressed in brain and muscle. Expression of XMEK2 in yeast cells suppressed the growth defect associated with loss of the yeast MAP kinase activator homologs, MKK1 and MKK2. Partial sequence of a second cDNA clone (XMEK3) identified yet another potential MAP kinase activator. The pattern of expression of XMEK3 is distinct from that of p42 MAPK and XMEK2. The high degree of amino acid sequence similarity of XMEK2, XMEK3, and MAPKK suggests that these three are related members of an amphibian family of protein kinases involved in the activation of MAP kinase. Discovery of this family suggests that multiple MAP kinase activation pathways similar to those in yeast cells exist in vertebrates.

1993 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 5738-5748 ◽  
Author(s):  
B M Yashar ◽  
C Kelley ◽  
K Yee ◽  
B Errede ◽  
L I Zon

Mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinases comprise an evolutionarily conserved family of proteins that includes at least three vertebrate protein kinases (p42, p44, and p55 MAPK) and five yeast protein kinases (SPK1, MPK1, HOG1, FUS3, and KSS1). Members of this family are activated by a variety of extracellular agents that influence cellular proliferation and differentiation. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, there are multiple physiologically distinct MAP kinase activation pathways composed of structurally related kinases. The recently cloned vertebrate MAP kinase activators are structurally related to MAP kinase activators in these yeast pathways. These similarities suggest that homologous kinase cascades are utilized for signal transduction in many, if not all, eukaryotes. We have identified additional members of the MAP kinase activator family in Xenopus laevis by a polymerase chain reaction-based analysis of embryonic cDNAs. One of the clones identified (XMEK2) encodes a unique predicted protein kinase that is similar to the previously reported activator (MAPKK) in X. laevis. XMEK2, a highly expressed maternal mRNA, is developmentally regulated during embryogenesis and expressed in brain and muscle. Expression of XMEK2 in yeast cells suppressed the growth defect associated with loss of the yeast MAP kinase activator homologs, MKK1 and MKK2. Partial sequence of a second cDNA clone (XMEK3) identified yet another potential MAP kinase activator. The pattern of expression of XMEK3 is distinct from that of p42 MAPK and XMEK2. The high degree of amino acid sequence similarity of XMEK2, XMEK3, and MAPKK suggests that these three are related members of an amphibian family of protein kinases involved in the activation of MAP kinase. Discovery of this family suggests that multiple MAP kinase activation pathways similar to those in yeast cells exist in vertebrates.


1993 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 3067-3075 ◽  
Author(s):  
K S Lee ◽  
K Irie ◽  
Y Gotoh ◽  
Y Watanabe ◽  
H Araki ◽  
...  

Mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinases are activated in response to a variety of stimuli through a protein kinase cascade that results in their phosphorylation on tyrosine and threonine residues. The molecular nature of this cascade is just beginning to emerge. Here we report the isolation of a Saccharomyces cerevisiae gene encoding a functional analog of mammalian MAP kinases, designated MPK1 (for MAP kinase). The MPK1 gene was isolated as a dosage-dependent suppressor of the cell lysis defect associated with deletion of the BCK1 gene. The BCK1 gene is also predicted to encode a protein kinase which has been proposed to function downstream of the protein kinase C isozyme encoded by PKC1. The MPK1 gene possesses a 1.5-kb uninterrupted open reading frame predicted to encode a 53-kDa protein. The predicted Mpk1 protein (Mpk1p) shares 48 to 50% sequence identity with Xenopus MAP kinase and with the yeast mating pheromone response pathway components, Fus3p and Kss1p. Deletion of MPK1 resulted in a temperature-dependent cell lysis defect that was virtually indistinguishable from that resulting from deletion of BCK1, suggesting that the protein kinases encoded by these genes function in a common pathway. Expression of Xenopus MAP kinase suppressed the defect associated with loss of MPK1 but not the mating-related defects associated with loss of FUS3 or KSS1, indicating functional conservation between the former two protein kinases. Mutation of the presumptive phosphorylated tyrosine and threonine residues of Mpk1p individually to phenylalanine and alanine, respectively, severely impaired Mpk1p function. Additional epistasis experiments, and the overall architectural similarity between the PKC1-mediated pathway and the pheromone response pathway, suggest that Pkc1p regulates a protein kinase cascade in which Bck1p activates a pair of protein kinases, designated Mkk1p and Mkk2p (for MAP kinase-kinase), which in turn activate Mpk1p.


1993 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 4539-4548
Author(s):  
J Wu ◽  
J K Harrison ◽  
P Dent ◽  
K R Lynch ◽  
M J Weber ◽  
...  

Mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinases are serine/threonine protein kinases activated by dual phosphorylation on threonine and tyrosine residues. A MAP kinase kinase (MKK1 or MEK1) has been identified as a dual-specificity protein kinase that is sufficient to phosphorylate MAP kinases p42mapk and p44mapk on the regulatory threonine and tyrosine residues. Because of the multiplicity of MAP kinase isoforms and the diverse circumstances and agonists leading to their activation, we thought it unlikely that a single MKK could accommodate this complexity. Indeed, two protein bands with MKK activity have previously been identified after renaturation following sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. We now report the molecular cloning and characterization of a second rat MAP kinase kinase cDNA, MKK2. MKK2 cDNA contains an open reading frame encoding a protein of 400 amino acids, 7 residues longer than MKK1 (MEK1). The amino acid sequence of MKK2 is 81% identical to that of MKK1, but nucleotide sequence differences occur throughout the aligned MKK2 and MKK1 cDNAs, indicating that MKK2 is the product of a distinct gene. MKK1 and MKK2 mRNAs are expressed differently in rat tissues. Both cDNAs when expressed in COS cells displayed the ability to phosphorylate and activate p42mapk and p44mapk, both MKK1 and MKK2 were activated in vivo in response to serum, and both could be phosphorylated and activated by the v-Raf protein in vitro. However, differences between MKK1 and MKK2 in sites of phosphorylation by proline-directed protein kinases predict differences in feedback regulation.


1993 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 3076-3083
Author(s):  
K Irie ◽  
M Takase ◽  
K S Lee ◽  
D E Levin ◽  
H Araki ◽  
...  

The PKC1 gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae encodes a homolog of mammalian protein kinase C that is required for normal growth and division of yeast cells. We report here the isolation of the yeast MKK1 and MKK2 (for mitogen-activated protein [MAP] kinase-kinase) genes which, when overexpressed, suppress the cell lysis defect of a temperature-sensitive pkc1 mutant. The MKK genes encode protein kinases most similar to the STE7 product of S. cerevisiae, the byr1 product of Schizosaccharomyces pombe, and vertebrate MAP kinase-kinases. Deletion of either MKK gene alone did not cause any apparent phenotypic defects, but deletion of both MKK1 and MKK2 resulted in a temperature-sensitive cell lysis defect that was suppressed by osmotic stabilizers. This phenotypic defect is similar to that associated with deletion of the BCK1 gene, which is thought to function in the pathway mediated by PCK1. The BCK1 gene also encodes a predicted protein kinase. Overexpression of MKK1 suppressed the growth defect caused by deletion of BCK1, whereas an activated allele of BCK1 (BCK1-20) did not suppress the defect of the mkk1 mkk2 double disruption. Furthermore, overexpression of MPK1, which encodes a protein kinase closely related to vertebrate MAP kinases, suppressed the defect of the mkk1 mkk2 double mutant. These results suggest that MKK1 and MKK2 function in a signal transduction pathway involving the protein kinases encoded by PKC1, BCK1, and MPK1. Genetic epistasis experiments indicated that the site of action for MKK1 and MKK2 is between BCK1 and MPK1.


1993 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 4539-4548 ◽  
Author(s):  
J Wu ◽  
J K Harrison ◽  
P Dent ◽  
K R Lynch ◽  
M J Weber ◽  
...  

Mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinases are serine/threonine protein kinases activated by dual phosphorylation on threonine and tyrosine residues. A MAP kinase kinase (MKK1 or MEK1) has been identified as a dual-specificity protein kinase that is sufficient to phosphorylate MAP kinases p42mapk and p44mapk on the regulatory threonine and tyrosine residues. Because of the multiplicity of MAP kinase isoforms and the diverse circumstances and agonists leading to their activation, we thought it unlikely that a single MKK could accommodate this complexity. Indeed, two protein bands with MKK activity have previously been identified after renaturation following sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. We now report the molecular cloning and characterization of a second rat MAP kinase kinase cDNA, MKK2. MKK2 cDNA contains an open reading frame encoding a protein of 400 amino acids, 7 residues longer than MKK1 (MEK1). The amino acid sequence of MKK2 is 81% identical to that of MKK1, but nucleotide sequence differences occur throughout the aligned MKK2 and MKK1 cDNAs, indicating that MKK2 is the product of a distinct gene. MKK1 and MKK2 mRNAs are expressed differently in rat tissues. Both cDNAs when expressed in COS cells displayed the ability to phosphorylate and activate p42mapk and p44mapk, both MKK1 and MKK2 were activated in vivo in response to serum, and both could be phosphorylated and activated by the v-Raf protein in vitro. However, differences between MKK1 and MKK2 in sites of phosphorylation by proline-directed protein kinases predict differences in feedback regulation.


2002 ◽  
Vol 80 (5) ◽  
pp. 375-382 ◽  
Author(s):  
Louis M Luttrell

Over the past decade, it has become apparent that many G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) generate signals that control cellular differentiation and growth, including stimulation of Ras family GTPases and activation of mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase pathways. The mechanisms that GPCRs use to control the activity of MAP kinases vary between receptor and cell type but fall broadly into one of three categories: signals initiated by classical G protein effectors, e.g., protein kinase (PK)A and PKC, signals initiated by cross-talk between GPCRs and classical receptor tyrosine kinases, e.g., "transactivation" of epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptors, and signals initiated by direct interaction between β-arrestins and components of the MAP kinase cascade, e.g., β-arrestin "scaffolds". While each of these pathways results in increased cellular MAP kinase activity, emerging data suggest that they are not functionally redundant. MAP kinase activation occurring via PKC-dependent pathways and EGF receptor transactivation leads to nuclear translocation of the kinase and stimulates cell proliferation, while MAP kinase activation via β-arrestin scaffolds primarily increases cytosolic kinase activity. By controlling the spatial and temporal distribution of MAP kinase activity within the cell, the consequences of GPCR-stimulated MAP kinase activation may be determined by the mechanism by which they are activated.Key words: G-protein-coupled receptor, receptor tyrosine kinase, β-arrestin, mitogen-activated protein kinase, extracellular signal-regulated kinase.


2003 ◽  
Vol 370 (2) ◽  
pp. 497-503 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles S.T. HII ◽  
Maurizio COSTABILE ◽  
George C. MAYNE ◽  
Channing J. DER ◽  
Andrew W. MURRAY ◽  
...  

The biochemical basis for the reduced lymphokine production by neonatal T cells compared with adult T cells remains poorly defined. Previous studies have raised the possibility that neonatal T cells could be deficient in their ability to transmit signals via protein kinase (PK) C. We now report that while PKC-dependent activation of the mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinases, c-Jun N-terminal protein kinase and the extracellular signal-regulated protein kinase (ERK)1/ERK2, was deficient in cord blood T cells compared with adult blood T cells, marked activation of the MAP kinases in cord blood T cells was achieved via PKC-independent means. Consistent with a deficiency in the signalling capability of PKC, cord blood T cells were selectively deficient in the expression of PKCβI, ∊, θ and ζ. Stimulation of cord blood T cells resulted in a time-dependent increase in PKC expression, with increases detectable by 4h. This was accompanied by an enhancement in MAP kinase activation via PKC-dependent means. These novel data suggest that an inadequacy in PKC-MAP kinase signalling may be responsible, at least in part, for the phenotype of cord blood T cells.


1993 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 3067-3075 ◽  
Author(s):  
K S Lee ◽  
K Irie ◽  
Y Gotoh ◽  
Y Watanabe ◽  
H Araki ◽  
...  

Mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinases are activated in response to a variety of stimuli through a protein kinase cascade that results in their phosphorylation on tyrosine and threonine residues. The molecular nature of this cascade is just beginning to emerge. Here we report the isolation of a Saccharomyces cerevisiae gene encoding a functional analog of mammalian MAP kinases, designated MPK1 (for MAP kinase). The MPK1 gene was isolated as a dosage-dependent suppressor of the cell lysis defect associated with deletion of the BCK1 gene. The BCK1 gene is also predicted to encode a protein kinase which has been proposed to function downstream of the protein kinase C isozyme encoded by PKC1. The MPK1 gene possesses a 1.5-kb uninterrupted open reading frame predicted to encode a 53-kDa protein. The predicted Mpk1 protein (Mpk1p) shares 48 to 50% sequence identity with Xenopus MAP kinase and with the yeast mating pheromone response pathway components, Fus3p and Kss1p. Deletion of MPK1 resulted in a temperature-dependent cell lysis defect that was virtually indistinguishable from that resulting from deletion of BCK1, suggesting that the protein kinases encoded by these genes function in a common pathway. Expression of Xenopus MAP kinase suppressed the defect associated with loss of MPK1 but not the mating-related defects associated with loss of FUS3 or KSS1, indicating functional conservation between the former two protein kinases. Mutation of the presumptive phosphorylated tyrosine and threonine residues of Mpk1p individually to phenylalanine and alanine, respectively, severely impaired Mpk1p function. Additional epistasis experiments, and the overall architectural similarity between the PKC1-mediated pathway and the pheromone response pathway, suggest that Pkc1p regulates a protein kinase cascade in which Bck1p activates a pair of protein kinases, designated Mkk1p and Mkk2p (for MAP kinase-kinase), which in turn activate Mpk1p.


1993 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 3076-3083 ◽  
Author(s):  
K Irie ◽  
M Takase ◽  
K S Lee ◽  
D E Levin ◽  
H Araki ◽  
...  

The PKC1 gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae encodes a homolog of mammalian protein kinase C that is required for normal growth and division of yeast cells. We report here the isolation of the yeast MKK1 and MKK2 (for mitogen-activated protein [MAP] kinase-kinase) genes which, when overexpressed, suppress the cell lysis defect of a temperature-sensitive pkc1 mutant. The MKK genes encode protein kinases most similar to the STE7 product of S. cerevisiae, the byr1 product of Schizosaccharomyces pombe, and vertebrate MAP kinase-kinases. Deletion of either MKK gene alone did not cause any apparent phenotypic defects, but deletion of both MKK1 and MKK2 resulted in a temperature-sensitive cell lysis defect that was suppressed by osmotic stabilizers. This phenotypic defect is similar to that associated with deletion of the BCK1 gene, which is thought to function in the pathway mediated by PCK1. The BCK1 gene also encodes a predicted protein kinase. Overexpression of MKK1 suppressed the growth defect caused by deletion of BCK1, whereas an activated allele of BCK1 (BCK1-20) did not suppress the defect of the mkk1 mkk2 double disruption. Furthermore, overexpression of MPK1, which encodes a protein kinase closely related to vertebrate MAP kinases, suppressed the defect of the mkk1 mkk2 double mutant. These results suggest that MKK1 and MKK2 function in a signal transduction pathway involving the protein kinases encoded by PKC1, BCK1, and MPK1. Genetic epistasis experiments indicated that the site of action for MKK1 and MKK2 is between BCK1 and MPK1.


2001 ◽  
Vol 280 (2) ◽  
pp. G229-G240 ◽  
Author(s):  
Soheila Marandi ◽  
Nadine De Keyser ◽  
Alain Saliez ◽  
Anne-Sophie Maernoudt ◽  
Etienne Marc Sokal ◽  
...  

The postreceptor events regulating the signal of insulin downstream in rat intestinal cells have not yet been analyzed. Our objectives were to identify the nature of receptor substrates and phosphorylated proteins involved in the signaling of insulin and to investigate the mechanism(s) by which insulin enhances intestinal hydrolases. In response to insulin, the following proteins were rapidly phosphorylated on tyrosine residues: 1) insulin receptor substrates-1 (IRS-1), -2, and -4; 2) phospholipase C-isoenzyme-γ; 3) the Ras-GTPase-activating protein (GAP) associated with Rho GAP and p62Src; 4) the insulin receptor β-subunit; 5) the p85 subunits of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI 3-kinase); 6) the Src homology 2 α-collagen protein; 7) protein kinase B; 8) mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase-1 and -2; and 9) growth receptor-bound protein-2. Compared with controls, insulin enhanced the intestinal activity of MAP kinase-2 and protein kinase B by two- and fivefold, respectively, but did not enhance p70/S6 ribosomal kinase. Administration of an antireceptor antibody or MAP-kinase inhibitor PD-98059 but not a PI 3-kinase inhibitor (wortmannin) to sucklings inhibited the effects of insulin on mucosal mass and enzyme expression. We conclude that normal rat enterocytes express all of the receptor substrates and mediators involved in different insulin signaling pathways and that receptor binding initiates a signal enhancing brush-border membrane hydrolase, which appears to be regulated by the cascade of MAP kinases but not by PI 3-kinase.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document