scholarly journals β-subunit myristoylation functions as an energy sensor by modulating the dynamics of AMP-activated Protein Kinase

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nada Ali ◽  
Naomi Ling ◽  
Srinath Krishnamurthy ◽  
Jonathan S. Oakhill ◽  
John W. Scott ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Β Subunit ◽  
Energy Sensor ◽  
Amp Activated Protein Kinase

scholarly journals VRK-1 extends life span by activation of AMPK via phosphorylation

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (27) ◽  
pp. eaaw7824
Author(s):  
Sangsoon Park ◽  
Murat Artan ◽  
Seung Hyun Han ◽  
Hae-Eun H. Park ◽  
Yoonji Jung ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Life Span ◽  
Adult Life ◽  
Adult Life Span ◽  
C Elegans ◽  
Energy Sensor ◽  
Evolutionarily Conserved ◽  
Cultured Human Cells ◽  
Germline Proliferation ◽  
Amp Activated Protein Kinase

Vaccinia virus–related kinase (VRK) is an evolutionarily conserved nuclear protein kinase. VRK-1, the single Caenorhabditis elegans VRK ortholog, functions in cell division and germline proliferation. However, the role of VRK-1 in postmitotic cells and adult life span remains unknown. Here, we show that VRK-1 increases organismal longevity by activating the cellular energy sensor, AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), via direct phosphorylation. We found that overexpression of vrk-1 in the soma of adult C. elegans increased life span and, conversely, inhibition of vrk-1 decreased life span. In addition, vrk-1 was required for longevity conferred by mutations that inhibit C. elegans mitochondrial respiration, which requires AMPK. VRK-1 directly phosphorylated and up-regulated AMPK in both C. elegans and cultured human cells. Thus, our data show that the somatic nuclear kinase, VRK-1, promotes longevity through AMPK activation, and this function appears to be conserved between C. elegans and humans.

scholarly journals Role of the energy sensor AMP-activated protein kinase in renal physiology and disease

2010 ◽  
Vol 298 (5) ◽  
pp. F1067-F1077 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth R. Hallows ◽  
Peter F. Mount ◽  
Núria M. Pastor-Soler ◽  
David A. Power
Keyword(s):  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Ion Transport ◽  
Ischemia Reperfusion Injury ◽  
Ischemia Reperfusion ◽  
Renal Physiology ◽  
Renal Diseases ◽  
Renal Hypertrophy ◽  
Energy Sensor ◽  
Energy Consuming ◽  
Amp Activated Protein Kinase

The ultrasensitive energy sensor AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) orchestrates the regulation of energy-generating and energy-consuming pathways. AMPK is highly expressed in the kidney where it is reported to be involved in a variety of physiological and pathological processes including ion transport, podocyte function, and diabetic renal hypertrophy. Sodium transport is the major energy-consuming process in the kidney, and AMPK has been proposed to contribute to the coupling of ion transport with cellular energy metabolism. Specifically, AMPK has been identified as a regulator of several ion transporters of significance in renal physiology, including the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR), the epithelial sodium channel (ENaC), the Na+-K+-2Cl− cotransporter (NKCC), and the vacuolar H+-ATPase (V-ATPase). Identified regulators of AMPK in the kidney include dietary salt, diabetes, adiponectin, and ischemia. Activation of AMPK in response to adiponectin is described in podocytes, where it reduces albuminuria, and in tubular cells, where it reduces glycogen accumulation. Reduced AMPK activity in the diabetic kidney is associated with renal accumulation of triglyceride and glycogen and the pathogenesis of diabetic renal hypertrophy. Acute renal ischemia causes a rapid and powerful activation of AMPK, but the functional significance of this observation remains unclear. Despite the recent advances, there remain significant gaps in the present understanding of both the upstream regulating pathways and the downstream substrates for AMPK in the kidney. A more complete understanding of the AMPK pathway in the kidney offers potential for improved therapies for several renal diseases including diabetic nephropathy, polycystic kidney disease, and ischemia-reperfusion injury.

AMP-activated protein kinase: a cellular energy sensor with a key role in metabolic disorders and in cancer

2011 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Grahame Hardie
Keyword(s):  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Metabolic Disorders ◽  
Adenine Nucleotides ◽  
Metabolic Stress ◽  
Branch Points ◽  
Atp Production ◽  
Nucleotide Binding Sites ◽  
Anticancer Effects ◽  
Energy Sensor ◽  
Amp Activated Protein Kinase

It is essential to life that a balance is maintained between processes that produce ATP and those that consume it. An obvious way to do this would be to have systems that monitor the levels of ATP and ADP, although because of the adenylate kinase reaction (2ADP↔ATP+AMP), AMP is actually a more sensitive indicator of energy stress than ADP. Following the discoveries that glycogen phosphorylase and phosphofructokinase were regulated by AMP and ATP, Daniel Atkinson proposed that all enzymes at branch points between biosynthesis and degradation would be regulated by adenine nucleotides. This turned out to be correct, but what Atkinson did not anticipate was that sensing of nucleotides would, in most cases, be performed not by the metabolic enzymes themselves, but by a signalling protein, AMPK (AMP-activated protein kinase). AMPK occurs in essentially all eukaryotes and consists of heterotrimeric complexes comprising catalytic α subunits and regulatory β and γ subunits, of which the latter carries the nucleotide-binding sites. Once activated by a metabolic stress, it phosphorylates numerous targets that alter enzyme activity and gene expression to initiate corrective responses. In lower eukaryotes, it is critically involved in the responses to starvation for a carbon source. Because of its ability to switch cellular metabolism from anabolic to catabolic mode, AMPK has become a key drug target to combat metabolic disorders associated with overnutrition such as Type 2 diabetes, and some existing anti-diabetic drugs (e.g. metformin) and many ‘nutraceuticals’ work by activating AMPK, usually via inhibition of mitochondrial ATP production. AMPK activators also potentially have anticancer effects, and there is already evidence that metformin provides protection against the initiation of cancer. Whether AMPK activators can be used to treat existing cancer is less clear, because many tumour cells appear to have been selected for mutations that inactivate the AMPK system. However, if we can identify the various mechanisms by which this occurs, we may be able to find ways of overcoming it.

scholarly journals Crystallization of the glycogen-binding domain of the AMP-activated protein kinase β subunit and preliminary X-ray analysis

2004 ◽  
Vol 61 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Galina Polekhina ◽  
Susanne C. Feil ◽  
Abhilasha Gupta ◽  
Paul O'Donnell ◽  
David Stapleton ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Binding Domain ◽  
Β Subunit ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Amp Activated Protein Kinase

scholarly journals Stimulation of hepatocytic AMP-activated protein kinase by okadaic acid and other autophagy-suppressive toxins

2005 ◽  
Vol 386 (2) ◽  
pp. 237-244 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hamid R. SAMARI ◽  
Michael T. N. MØLLER ◽  
Lise HOLDEN ◽  
Tonje ASMYHR ◽  
Per O. SEGLEN
Keyword(s):  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Okadaic Acid ◽  
Rat Hepatocytes ◽  
Calyculin A ◽  
Β Subunit ◽  
Isolated Rat Hepatocytes ◽  
Α Subunit ◽  
Ampk Activity ◽  
Amp Activated Protein Kinase

Autophagic activity in isolated rat hepatocytes is strongly suppressed by OA (okadaic acid) and other PP (protein phosphatase)-inhibitory toxins as well as by AICAR (5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide riboside), a direct activator of AMPK (AMP-activated protein kinase). To investigate whether AMPK is a mediator of the effects of the toxin, a phosphospecific antibody directed against the activation of phosphorylation of the AMPK α (catalytic)-subunit at Thr172 was used to assess the activation status of this enzyme. AICAR as well as all the toxins tested (OA, microcystin-LR, calyculin A, cantharidin and tautomycin) induced strong, dose-dependent AMPKα phosphorylation, correlating with AMPK activity in situ (in intact hepatocytes) as measured by the AMPK-dependent phosphorylation of acetyl-CoA carboxylase at Ser79. All treatments induced the appearance of multiple, phosphatase-sensitive, low-mobility forms of the AMPK α-subunit, consistent with phosphorylation at several sites other than Thr172. The flavonoid naringin, an effective antagonist of OA-induced autophagy suppression, inhibited the AMPK phosphorylation and mobility shifting induced by AICAR, OA or microcystin, but not the changes induced by calyculin A or cantharidin. AMPK may thus be activated both by a naringin-sensitive and a naringin-resistant mechanism, probably involving the PPs PP2A and PP1 respectively. Neither the Thr172-phosphorylating protein kinase LKB1 nor the Thr172-dephosphorylating PP, PP2C, were mobility-shifted after treatment with toxins or AICAR, whereas a slight mobility shifting of the regulatory AMPK β-subunit was indicated. Immunoblotting with a phosphospecific antibody against pSer108 at the β-subunit revealed a naringin-sensitive phosphorylation induced by OA, microcystin and AICAR and a naringin-resistant phosphorylation induced by calyculin A and cantharidin, suggesting that β-subunit phosphorylation could play a role in AMPK activation. Naringin antagonized the autophagy-suppressive effects of AICAR and OA, but not the autophagy suppression caused by cantharidin, consistent with AMPK-mediated inhibition of autophagy by toxins as well as by AICAR.

scholarly journals AMP-activated protein kinase, stress responses and cardiovascular diseases

2012 ◽  
Vol 122 (12) ◽  
pp. 555-573 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shaobin Wang ◽  
Ping Song ◽  
Ming-Hui Zou
Keyword(s):  
Cell Proliferation ◽  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Stress Responses ◽  
Recent Literature ◽  
Redox Balance ◽  
Cellular Polarity ◽  
Pathological Conditions ◽  
Energy Sensor ◽  
Intracellular Energy ◽  
Amp Activated Protein Kinase

AMPK (AMP-activated protein kinase) is one of the key players in maintaining intracellular homoeostasis. AMPK is well known as an energy sensor and can be activated by increased intracellular AMP levels. Generally, the activation of AMPK turns on catabolic pathways that generate ATP, while inhibiting cell proliferation and biosynthetic processes that consume ATP. In recent years, intensive investigations on the regulation and the function of AMPK indicates that AMPK not only functions as an intracellular energy sensor and regulator, but is also a general stress sensor that is important in maintaining intracellular homoeostasis during many kinds of stress challenges. In the present paper, we will review recent literature showing that AMPK functions far beyond its proposed energy sensor and regulator function. AMPK regulates ROS (reactive oxygen species)/redox balance, autophagy, cell proliferation, cell apoptosis, cellular polarity, mitochondrial function and genotoxic response, either directly or indirectly via numerous downstream pathways under physiological and pathological conditions.

Post-translational modifications of the β-1 subunit of AMP-activated protein kinase affect enzyme activity and cellular localization

2001 ◽  
Vol 354 (2) ◽  
pp. 275-283 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott M. WARDEN ◽  
Christine RICHARDSON ◽  
John O'DONNELL ◽  
David STAPLETON ◽  
Bruce E. KEMP ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Enzyme Activity ◽  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Mammalian Cells ◽  
Cellular Localization ◽  
Phosphorylation Site ◽  
Site Directed Mutagenesis ◽  
Β Subunit ◽  
Α Subunit ◽  
Amp Activated Protein Kinase ◽  
The Impact

The AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is a ubiquitous mammalian protein kinase important in the adaptation of cells to metabolic stress. The enzyme is a heterotrimer, consisting of a catalytic α subunit and regulatory β and γ subunits, each of which is a member of a larger isoform family. The enzyme is allosterically regulated by AMP and by phosphorylation of the α subunit. The β subunit is post-translationally modified by myristoylation and multi-site phosphorylation. In the present study, we have examined the impact of post-translational modification of the β-1 subunit on enzyme activity, heterotrimer assembly and subcellular localization, using site-directed mutagenesis and expression of subunits in mammalian cells. Removal of the myristoylation site (G2A mutant) results in a 4-fold activation of the enzyme and relocalization of the β subunit from a particulate extranuclear distribution to a more homogenous cell distribution. Mutation of the serine-108 phosphorylation site to alanine is associated with enzyme inhibition, but no change in cell localization. In contrast, the phosphorylation site mutations, SS24,25AA and S182A, while having no effects on enzyme activity, are associated with nuclear redistribution of the subunit. Taken together, these results indicate that both myristoylation and phosphorylation of the β subunit of AMPK modulate enzyme activity and subunit cellular localization, increasing the complexity of AMPK regulation.

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