scholarly journals Impact of Feedback Phosphorylation and Raf Heterodimerization on Normal and Mutant B-Raf Signaling

2009 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 806-819 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel A. Ritt ◽  
Daniel M. Monson ◽  
Suzanne I. Specht ◽  
Deborah K. Morrison

ABSTRACT The B-Raf kinase is a Ras pathway effector activated by mutation in numerous human cancers and certain developmental disorders. Here we report that normal and oncogenic B-Raf proteins are subject to a regulatory cycle of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK)-dependent feedback phosphorylation, followed by PP2A- and Pin1-dependent dephosphorylation/recycling. We identify four S/TP sites of B-Raf phosphorylated by activated ERK and find that feedback phosphorylation of B-Raf inhibits binding to activated Ras and disrupts heterodimerization with C-Raf, which is dependent on the B-Raf pS729/14-3-3 binding site. Moreover, we find that events influencing Raf heterodimerization can alter the transforming potential of oncogenic B-Raf proteins possessing intermediate or impaired kinase activity but have no significant effect on proteins with high kinase activity, such as V600E B-Raf. Mutation of the feedback sites or overexpression of the Pin1 prolyl-isomerase, which facilitates B-Raf dephosphorylation/recycling, resulted in increased transformation, whereas mutation of the S729/14-3-3 binding site or expression of dominant negative Pin1 reduced transformation. Mutation of each feedback site caused increased transformation and correlated with enhanced heterodimerization and activation of C-Raf. Finally, we find that B-Raf and C-Raf proteins containing mutations identified in certain developmental disorders constitutively heterodimerize and that their signaling activity can also be modulated by feedback phosphorylation.

2001 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 249-259 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott T. Eblen ◽  
Andrew D. Catling ◽  
Marcela C. Assanah ◽  
Michael J. Weber

ABSTRACT Extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1 (ERK1) and ERK2 are important components in signal transduction pathways involved in many cellular processes, including cell differentiation and proliferation. These proteins consist of a central kinase domain flanked by short N- and C-terminal noncatalytic domains. While the regulation of ERK2 by sequences within the kinase domain has been extensively studied, little is known about the small regions outside of the kinase domain. We performed mutational analysis on the N-terminal, noncatalytic domain of ERK2 in an attempt to determine its role in ERK2 function and regulation. Deleting or mutating amino acids 19 to 25 (ERK2-Δ19-25) created an ERK2 molecule that could be phosphorylated in response to growth factor and serum stimulation in a MEK (mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase or ERK kinase)-dependent manner but had little kinase activity and was unable to bind to MEK in vivo. Since MEK acts as a cytoplasmic anchor for the ERKs, the lack of a MEK interaction resulted in the aberrant nuclear localization of ERK2-Δ19-25 mutants in serum-starved cells. Assaying these mutants for their ability to affect ERK signaling revealed that ERK2-Δ19-25 mutants acted in a dominant-negative manner to inhibit transcriptional signaling through endogenous ERKs to an Elk1-responsive promoter in transfected COS-1 cells. However, ERK2-Δ19-25 had no effect on the phosphorylation of RSK2, an ERK2 cytoplasmic substrate, whereas a nonactivatable ERK (T183A) that retained these sequences could inhibit RSK2 phosphorylation. These results suggest that the N-terminal domain of ERK2 profoundly affects ERK2 localization, MEK binding, kinase activity, and signaling and identify a novel dominant-negative mutant of ERK2 that can dissociate at least some transcriptional responses from cytoplasmic responses.


2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 360-364 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian R. Hoerner ◽  
Rustin Massoudi ◽  
Thomas J. Metzner ◽  
Laurel Stell ◽  
Jennifer J. O’Rourke ◽  
...  

2007 ◽  
Vol 176 (5) ◽  
pp. 709-718 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chunxi Ge ◽  
Guozhi Xiao ◽  
Di Jiang ◽  
Renny T. Franceschi

The extracellular signal–regulated kinase (ERK)–mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway provides a major link between the cell surface and nucleus to control proliferation and differentiation. However, its in vivo role in skeletal development is unknown. A transgenic approach was used to establish a role for this pathway in bone. MAPK stimulation achieved by selective expression of constitutively active MAPK/ERK1 (MEK-SP) in osteoblasts accelerated in vitro differentiation of calvarial cells, as well as in vivo bone development, whereas dominant-negative MEK1 was inhibitory. The involvement of the RUNX2 transcription factor in this response was established in two ways: (a) RUNX2 phosphorylation and transcriptional activity were elevated in calvarial osteoblasts from TgMek-sp mice and reduced in cells from TgMek-dn mice, and (b) crossing TgMek-sp mice with Runx2+/− animals partially rescued the hypomorphic clavicles and undemineralized calvaria associated with Runx2 haploinsufficiency, whereas TgMek-dn; Runx2+/− mice had a more severe skeletal phenotype. This work establishes an important in vivo function for the ERK–MAPK pathway in bone that involves stimulation of RUNX2 phosphorylation and transcriptional activity.


2004 ◽  
Vol 24 (19) ◽  
pp. 8691-8704 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masashi Akaike ◽  
Wenyi Che ◽  
Nicole-Lerner Marmarosh ◽  
Shinsuke Ohta ◽  
Masaki Osawa ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPAR) are ligand-activated transcription factors that form a subfamily of the nuclear receptor gene family. Since both flow and PPARγ have atheroprotective effects and extracellular signal-regulated kinase 5 (ERK5) kinase activity is significantly increased by flow, we investigated whether ERK5 kinase regulates PPARγ activity. We found that activation of ERK5 induced PPARγ1 activation in endothelial cells (ECs). However, we could not detect PPARγ phosphorylation by incubation with activated ERK5 in vitro, in contrast to ERK1/2 and JNK, suggesting a role for ERK5 as a scaffold. Endogenous PPARγ1 was coimmunoprecipitated with endogenous ERK5 in ECs. By mammalian two-hybrid analysis, we found that PPARγ1 associated with ERK5a at the hinge-helix 1 region of PPARγ1. Expressing a hinge-helix 1 region PPARγ1 fragment disrupted the ERK5a-PPARγ1 interaction, suggesting a critical role for hinge-helix 1 region of PPARγ in the ERK5-PPARγ interaction. Flow increased ERK5 and PPARγ1 activation, and the hinge-helix 1 region of the PPARγ1 fragment and dominant negative MEK5β significantly reduced flow-induced PPARγ activation. The dominant negative MEK5β also prevented flow-mediated inhibition of tumor necrosis factor alpha-mediated NF-κB activation and adhesion molecule expression, including vascular cellular adhesion molecule 1 and E-selectin, indicating a physiological role for ERK5 and PPARγ activation in flow-mediated antiinflammatory effects. We also found that ERK5 kinase activation was required, likely by inducing a conformational change in the NH2-terminal region of ERK5 that prevented association of ERK5 and PPARγ1. Furthermore, association of ERK5a and PPARγ1 disrupted the interaction of SMRT and PPARγ1, thereby inducing PPARγ activation. These data suggest that ERK5 mediates flow- and ligand-induced PPARγ activation via the interaction of ERK5 with the hinge-helix 1 region of PPARγ.


2004 ◽  
Vol 24 (10) ◽  
pp. 4534-4545 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joel R. Sevinsky ◽  
Anne M. Whalen ◽  
Natalie G. Ahn

ABSTRACT Extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) facilitates cell cycle progression in most mammalian cells, but in certain cell types prolonged signaling through this pathway promotes differentiation and lineage-specific gene expression through mechanisms that are poorly understood. Here, we characterize the transcriptional regulation of platelet GPIIb integrin (CD41) by ERK during megakaryocyte differentiation. ERK-dependent transactivation involves the proximal promoter of GPIIb within 114 bp upstream of the transcriptional start site. GATA, Ets, and Sp1 consensus sequences within this region are each necessary and function combinatorially in ERK-activated transcription. MafB/Kreisler is induced in response to ERK and synergizes with GATA and Ets to enhance transcription from the proximal promoter. The requirement for MafB in promoter regulation is demonstrated by inhibition of transactivation following dominant-negative or antisense suppression of MafB function. Thus, ERK promotes megakaryocyte differentiation by coordinate regulation of nuclear factors that synergize in GPIIb promoter regulation. These results establish a novel role for MafB as a regulator of ERK-induced gene expression.


2001 ◽  
Vol 21 (21) ◽  
pp. 7460-7469 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qiangrong Liang ◽  
Russell J. Wiese ◽  
Orlando F. Bueno ◽  
Yan-Shan Dai ◽  
Bruce E. Markham ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT The zinc finger-containing transcription factor GATA4 has been implicated as a critical regulator of multiple cardiac-expressed genes as well as a regulator of inducible gene expression in response to hypertrophic stimulation. Here we demonstrate that GATA4 is itself regulated by the mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling cascade through direct phosphorylation. Site-directed mutagenesis and phospho-specific GATA4 antiserum revealed serine 105 as the primary site involved in agonist-induced phosphorylation of GATA4. Infection of cultured cardiomyocytes with an activated MEK1-expressing adenovirus induced robust phosphorylation of serine 105 in GATA4, while a dominant-negative MEK1-expressing adenovirus blocked agonist-induced phosphorylation of serine 105, implicating extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) as a GATA4 kinase. Indeed, bacterially purified ERK2 protein directly phosphorylated purified GATA4 at serine 105 in vitro. Phosphorylation of serine 105 enhanced the transcriptional potency of GATA4, which was sensitive to U0126 (MEK1 inhibitor) but not SB202190 (p38 inhibitor). Phosphorylation of serine 105 also modestly enhanced the DNA binding activity of bacterially purified GATA4. Finally, induction of cardiomyocyte hypertrophy with an activated MEK1-expressing adenovirus was blocked with a dominant-negative GATA4-engrailed-expressing adenovirus. These results suggest a molecular pathway whereby MEK1-ERK1/2 signaling regulates cardiomyocyte hypertrophic growth through the transcription factor GATA4 by direct phosphorylation of serine 105, which enhances DNA binding and transcriptional activation.


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