Phosphorylation of Argonaute proteins: regulating gene regulators

2008 ◽  
Vol 413 (3) ◽  
pp. e7-e9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sabine Rüdel ◽  
Gunter Meister
Keyword(s):  
Gene Silencing ◽  
Translational Regulation ◽  
Mitogen Activated Protein Kinase ◽  
Rna Turnover ◽  
Processing Bodies ◽  
P Bodies ◽  
Biochemical Journal ◽  
Mitogen Activated Protein ◽  
Silencing Pathways ◽  
Protein Kinase Signalling

Members of the Ago (Argonaute) protein family are the mediators of small RNA-guided gene-silencing pathways including RNAi (RNA interference), translational regulation by miRNAs (microRNAs) and transcriptional silencing. Recent findings by Zeng et al. in this issue of the Biochemical Journal demonstrate that Ago proteins are post-translationally modified by phosphorylation of Ser387. Mutating Ser387 to alanine leads to reduced localization of human Ago2 to cytoplasmic P-bodies (processing bodies), cellular sites where RNA turnover and, at least in part, miRNA-guided gene regulation occurs. Zeng et al. further show that a member of the MAPK (mitogen-activated protein kinase) signalling pathway phosphorylates Ago2 at Ser387, suggesting that Ago2-mediated gene silencing might be linked to distinct signalling pathways.

AMPK, MAPK and Bax in the heart: some questions answered

2008 ◽  
Vol 412 (2) ◽  
pp. e15-e16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vilmante Borutaite
Keyword(s):  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Mitogen Activated Protein Kinase ◽  
Wide Field ◽  
Biochemical Journal ◽  
Mitogen Activated Protein ◽  
Isolated Cardiac Myocytes ◽  
And Migration ◽  
Induced Apoptosis ◽  
Amp Activated Protein Kinase ◽  
Rapid Activation

The question of how Bax is activated during apoptosis to perform its role in permeabilization of mitochondrial membranes is intriguing for investigators in the wide field of cell death research. In their paper published in the Biochemical Journal in 2006, Capano and Crompton presented their discovery that simulated ischaemia causes rapid activation of AMPK (AMP-activated protein kinase) which phosphorylates and activates p38 MAPK (mitogen-activated protein kinase) leading to Bax activation and translocation to mitochondria in isolated cardiac myocytes. This was the first report on the molecular mechanism of Bax activation and migration during ischaemia-induced apoptosis in cardiomyocytes.

Involvement of mitogen-activated protein kinase signalling in pearl millet–downy mildew interaction

Plant Science ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 214 ◽  
pp. 29-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Prasad Melvin ◽  
Sreedhara Ashok Prabhu ◽  
Chandra Pal Anup ◽  
Sekhar Shailasree ◽  
Huntrike Shekar Shetty ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Downy Mildew ◽  
Pearl Millet ◽  
Mitogen Activated Protein Kinase ◽  
Mitogen Activated Protein ◽  
Protein Kinase Signalling

Phosphorylation of Argonaute 2 at serine-387 facilitates its localization to processing bodies

2008 ◽  
Vol 413 (3) ◽  
pp. 429-436 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yan Zeng ◽  
Heidi Sankala ◽  
Xiaoxiao Zhang ◽  
Paul R. Graves
Keyword(s):  
Protein Kinase ◽  
P38 Mapk ◽  
Kinase Inhibitor ◽  
Mapk Pathway ◽  
Phosphorylation Site ◽  
Mitogen Activated Protein Kinase ◽  
Processing Bodies ◽  
Mitogen Activated Protein

Ago (Argonaute) proteins are essential effectors of RNA-mediated gene silencing. To explore potential regulatory mechanisms for Ago proteins, we examined the phosphorylation of human Ago2. We identified serine-387 as the major Ago2 phosphorylation site in vivo. Phosphorylation of Ago2 at serine-387 was significantly induced by treatment with sodium arsenite or anisomycin, and arsenite-induced phosphorylation was inhibited by a p38 MAPK (mitogen-activated protein kinase) inhibitor, but not by inhibitors of JNK (c-Jun N-terminal kinase) or MEK [MAPK/ERK (extracellular-signal-regulated kinase) kinase]. MAPKAPK2 (MAPK-activated protein kinase-2) phosphorylated bacterially expressed full-length human Ago2 at serine-387 in vitro, but not the S387A mutant. Finally, mutation of serine-387 to an alanine residue or treatment of cells with a p38 MAPK inhibitor reduced the localization of Ago2 to processing bodies. These results suggest a potential regulatory mechanism for RNA silencing acting through Ago2 serine-387 phosphorylation mediated by the p38 MAPK pathway.

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