scholarly journals A Link between Benzyl Isothiocyanate-Induced Cell Cycle Arrest and Apoptosis: Involvement of Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases in the Bcl-2 Phosphorylation

2004 ◽  
Vol 64 (6) ◽  
pp. 2134-2142 ◽  
Author(s):  
Noriyuki Miyoshi ◽  
Koji Uchida ◽  
Toshihiko Osawa ◽  
Yoshimasa Nakamura
2008 ◽  
Vol 7 (8) ◽  
pp. 1309-1317 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iwona Migdal ◽  
Yulia Ilina ◽  
Markus J. Tamás ◽  
Robert Wysocki

ABSTRACT Cells slow down cell cycle progression in order to adapt to unfavorable stress conditions. Yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) responds to osmotic stress by triggering G1 and G2 checkpoint delays that are dependent on the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) Hog1. The high-osmolarity glycerol (HOG) pathway is also activated by arsenite, and the hog1Δ mutant is highly sensitive to arsenite, partly due to increased arsenite influx into hog1Δ cells. Yeast cell cycle regulation in response to arsenite and the role of Hog1 in this process have not yet been analyzed. Here, we found that long-term exposure to arsenite led to transient G1 and G2 delays in wild-type cells, whereas cells that lack the HOG1 gene or are defective in Hog1 kinase activity displayed persistent G1 cell cycle arrest. Elevated levels of intracellular arsenite and “cross talk” between the HOG and pheromone response pathways, observed in arsenite-treated hog1Δ cells, prolonged the G1 delay but did not cause a persistent G1 arrest. In contrast, deletion of the SIC1 gene encoding a cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor fully suppressed the observed block of G1 exit in hog1Δ cells. Moreover, the Sic1 protein was stabilized in arsenite-treated hog1Δ cells. Interestingly, Sic1-dependent persistent G1 arrest was also observed in hog1Δ cells during hyperosmotic stress. Taken together, our data point to an important role of the Hog1 kinase in adaptation to stress-induced G1 cell cycle arrest.


2002 ◽  
Vol 22 (10) ◽  
pp. 3497-3508 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gerardo Ferbeyre ◽  
Elisa de Stanchina ◽  
Athena W. Lin ◽  
Emmanuelle Querido ◽  
Mila E. McCurrach ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Oncogenic activation of the mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase cascade in murine fibroblasts initiates a senescence-like cell cycle arrest that depends on the ARF/p53 tumor suppressor pathway. To investigate whether p53 is sufficient to induce senescence, we introduced a conditional murine p53 allele (p53val135 ) into p53-null mouse embryonic fibroblasts and examined cell proliferation and senescence in cells expressing p53, oncogenic Ras, or both gene products. Conditional p53 activation efficiently induced a reversible cell cycle arrest but was unable to induce features of senescence. In contrast, coexpression of oncogenic ras or activated mek1 with p53 enhanced both p53 levels and activity relative to that observed for p53 alone and produced an irreversible cell cycle arrest that displayed features of cellular senescence. p19ARF was required for this effect, since p53 −/− ARF −/− double-null cells were unable to undergo senescence following coexpression of oncogenic Ras and p53. Although the levels of exogenous p53 achieved in ARF-null cells were relatively low, the stabilizing effects of p19ARF on p53 could not explain the cooperation between oncogenic Ras and p53 in promoting senescence. Hence, enforced p53 expression without oncogenic ras in p53 −/− mdm2 −/− double-null cells produced extremely high p53 levels but did not induce senescence. Taken together, our results indicate that oncogenic activation of the MAP kinase pathway in murine fibroblasts converts p53 into a senescence inducer through both quantitative and qualitative mechanisms.


2006 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 317-327 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melanie Heinrich ◽  
Tim Köhler ◽  
Hans-Ulrich Mösch

ABSTRACT In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the highly conserved Rho-type GTPase Cdc42 is essential for cell division and controls cellular development during mating and invasive growth. The role of Cdc42 in mating has been controversial, but a number of previous studies suggest that the GTPase controls the mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase cascade by activating the p21-activated protein kinase (PAK) Ste20. To further explore the role of Cdc42 in pheromone-stimulated signaling, we isolated novel alleles of CDC42 that confer resistance to pheromone. We find that in CDC42(V36A) and CDC42(V36A, I182T) mutant strains, the inability to undergo pheromone-induced cell cycle arrest correlates with reduced phosphorylation of the mating MAP kinases Fus3 and Kss1 and with a decrease in mating efficiency. Furthermore, Cdc42(V36A) and Cdc42(V36A, I182T) proteins show reduced interaction with the PAK Cla4 but not with Ste20. We also show that deletion of CLA4 in a CDC42(V36A, I182T) mutant strain suppresses pheromone resistance and that overexpression of CLA4 interferes with pheromone-induced cell cycle arrest and MAP kinase phosphorylation in CDC42 wild-type strains. Our data indicate that Cla4 has the potential to act as a negative regulator of the mating pathway and that this function of the PAK might be under control of Cdc42. In conclusion, our study suggests that control of pheromone signaling by Cdc42 not only depends on Ste20 but also involves interaction of the GTPase with Cla4.


2009 ◽  
Vol 29 (16) ◽  
pp. 4341-4351 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vanesa Lafarga ◽  
Ana Cuadrado ◽  
Isabel Lopez de Silanes ◽  
Rocio Bengoechea ◽  
Oscar Fernandez-Capetillo ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Activation of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) plays an important role in the G2/M cell cycle arrest induced by DNA damage, but little is known about the role of this signaling pathway in the G1/S transition. Upregulation of the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor p21Cip1 is thought to make a major contribution to the G1/S cell cycle arrest induced by γ radiation. We show here that inhibition of p38 MAPK impairs p21Cip1 accumulation and, as a result, the ability of cells to arrest in G1 in response to γ radiation. We found that p38 MAPK induces p21Cip1 mRNA stabilization, without affecting its transcription or the stability of the protein. In particular, p38 MAPK phosphorylates the mRNA binding protein HuR on Thr118, which results in cytoplasmic accumulation of HuR and its enhanced binding to the p21Cip1 mRNA. Our findings help to understand the emerging role of p38 MAPK in the cellular responses to DNA damage and reveal the existence of p53-independent networks that cooperate in modulating p21Cip1 levels at the G1/S checkpoint.


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