scholarly journals BRF1 Protein Turnover and mRNA Decay Activity Are Regulated by Protein Kinase B at the Same Phosphorylation Sites

2006 ◽  
Vol 26 (24) ◽  
pp. 9497-9507 ◽  
Author(s):  
Don Benjamin ◽  
Martin Schmidlin ◽  
Lu Min ◽  
Brigitte Gross ◽  
Christoph Moroni

ABSTRACT BRF1 posttranscriptionally regulates mRNA levels by targeting ARE-bearing transcripts to the decay machinery. We previously showed that protein kinase B (PKB) phosphorylates BRF1 at Ser92, resulting in binding to 14-3-3 and impairment of mRNA decay activity. Here we identify an additional regulatory site at Ser203 that cooperates in vivo with Ser92. In vitro kinase labeling and wortmannin sensitivity indicate that Ser203 phosphorylation is also performed by PKB. Mutation of both serines to alanine uncouples BRF1 from PKB regulation, leading to constitutive mRNA decay even in the presence of stabilizing signals. BRF1 protein is labile because of proteasomal degradation (half-life, <3 h) but becomes stabilized upon phosphorylation and is less stable in PKBα−/− cells. Surprisingly, phosphorylation-dependent protein stability is also regulated by Ser92 and Ser203, with parallel phosphorylation required at these sites. Phosphorylation-dependent binding to 14-3-3 is abolished only when both sites are mutated. Cell compartment fractionation experiments support a model in which binding to 14-3-3 sequesters BRF1 through relocalization and prevents it from executing its mRNA decay activity, as well as from proteasomal degradation, thereby maintaining high BRF1 protein levels that are required to reinstate decay upon dissipation of the stabilizing signal.

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hai-Jun Gao ◽  
Xu-Dong Sun ◽  
Yan-Ping Luo ◽  
Hua-Sheng Pang ◽  
Xing-Ming Ma ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Echinococcosis, which is caused by the larvae of cestodes of the genus Echinococcus, is a parasitic zoonosis that poses a serious threat to the health of humans and animals globally. Albendazole is the drug of choice for the treatment of echinococcosis, but it is difficult to meet clinical goals with this chemotherapy due to its low cure rate and associated side effects after its long-term use. Hence, novel anti-parasitic targets and effective treatment alternatives are urgently needed. A previous study showed that verapamil (Vepm) can suppress the growth of Echinococcus granulosus larvae; however, the mechanism of this effect remains unclear. The aim of the present study was to gain insight into the anti-echinococcal effect of Vepm on Echinococcus with a particular focus on the regulatory effect of Vepm on calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (Ca2+/CaM-CaMKII) in infected mice. Methods The anti-echinococcal effects of Vepm on Echinococcus granulosus protoscoleces (PSC) in vitro and Echinococcus multilocularis metacestodes in infected mice were assessed. The morphological alterations in Echinococcus spp. induced by Vepm were observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and the changes in calcium content in both the parasite and mouse serum and liver were measured by SEM-energy dispersive spectrometry, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry and alizarin red staining. Additionally, the changes in the protein and mRNA levels of CaM and CaMKII in infected mice, and in the mRNA levels of CaMKII in E. granulosus PSC, were evaluated after treatment with Vepm by immunohistochemistry and/or real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Results In vitro, E. granulosus PSC could be killed by Vepm at a concentration of 0.5 μg/ml or higher within 8 days. Under these conditions, the ultrastructure of PSC was damaged, and this damage was accompanied by obvious calcium loss and downregulation of CaMKII mRNA expression. In vivo, the weight and the calcium content of E. multilocularis metacestodes from mice were reduced after treatment with 40 mg/kg Vepm, and an elevation of the calcium content in the sera and livers of infected mice was observed. In addition, downregulation of CaM and CaMKII protein and mRNA expression in the livers of mice infected with E. multilocularis metacestodes was found after treatment with Vepm. Conclusions Vepm exerted a parasiticidal effect against Echinococcus both in vitro and in vivo through downregulating the expression of Ca2+/CaM-CaMKII, which was over-activated by parasitic infection. The results suggest that Ca2+/CaM-CaMKII may be a novel drug target, and that Vepm is a potential anti-echinococcal drug for the future control of echinococcosis.


1998 ◽  
Vol 331 (1) ◽  
pp. 299-308 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kay S. WALKER ◽  
Maria DEAK ◽  
Andrew PATERSON ◽  
Kevin HUDSON ◽  
Philip COHEN ◽  
...  

The regulatory and catalytic properties of the three mammalian isoforms of protein kinase B (PKB) have been compared. All three isoforms (PKBα, PKBβ and PKBγ) were phosphorylated at similar rates and activated to similar extents by 3-phosphoinositide-dependent protein kinase-1 (PDK1). Phosphorylation and activation of each enzyme required the presence of PtdIns(3,4,5)P3 or PtdIns(3,4)P2, as well as PDK1. The activation of PKBβ and PKBγ by PDK1 was accompanied by the phosphorylation of the residues equivalent to Thr308 in PKBα, namely Thr309 (PKBβ) and Thr305 (PKBγ). PKBγ which had been activated by PDK1 possessed a substrate specificity identical with that of PKBα and PKBβ towards a range of peptides. The activation of PKBγ and its phosphorylation at Thr305 was triggered by insulin-like growth factor-1 in 293 cells. Stimulation of rat adipocytes or rat hepatocytes with insulin induced the activation of PKBα and PKBβ with similar kinetics. After stimulation of adipocytes, the activity of PKBβ was twice that of PKBα, but in hepatocytes PKBα activity was four-fold higher than PKBβ. Insulin induced the activation of PKBα in rat skeletal muscle in vivo, with little activation of PKBβ. Insulin did not induce PKBγ activity in adipocytes, hepatocytes or skeletal muscle, but PKBγ was the major isoform activated by insulin in rat L6 myotubes (a skeletal-muscle cell line).


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hai-Jun Gao ◽  
Xu-Dong Sun ◽  
Yan-Ping Luo ◽  
Hua-Sheng Pang ◽  
Xing-Ming Ma ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Echinococcosis caused by the larvae of cestodes of the genus Echinococcus is a parasitic zoonosis that poses a serious threat to the health of humans and animals globally. Albendazole is the drug of choice for the treatment of echinococcosis, but it is difficult to meet clinical goals with this chemotherapy due to its low cure rate and the assocaiated side effects after long-time use. Hence, novel anti-parasitic targets and effective treatment alternatives are urgently needed. A previous study showed that verapamil can suppress the growth of Echinococcus granulosus larvae; however, the mechanism of this effect remains unclear. The aim of the present study was to gain insight into the anti-echinococcal effect of verapamil on Echinococcus with a particular focus on the regulatory effect of verapamil on calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase Ⅱ (Ca2+/CaM-CamKⅡ) in infected mice.Methods: The anti-echinococcal effects of verapamil on E. granulosus protoscoleces (PSC) in vitro and E. multilocularis metacestodes in infected mice were assessed. The morphological alterations in Echinococcus spp. induced by verapamil were observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and the changes in calcium content in both the parasite and mouse serum and liver were measured by SEM-energy dispersive spectrometry, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry and Alizarin red staining. Additionally, the changes in the protein and mRNA levels of CaM and CamKⅡ in infected mice, and in the mRNA levels of CamKⅡ in E. granulosus PSC were evaluated after treatment with verapamil by immunohistochemistry and/or real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction.Results: In vitro, E. granulosus PSC could be killed by verapamil at a concentration of 0.5 μg/mL or higher within 8 days. Under these conditions, the ultrastructure of PSC was damaged, and this damage was accompanied obvious calcium loss and downregulation of CamKⅡ mRNA expression. In vivo, the weight and the calcium content of E. multilocularis metacestodes from mice were reduced after treatment with 40 mg/kg verapamil, and an elevation of the calcium content in the sera and livers of infected mice was observed. In addition, downregulation of CaM and CamKⅡ protein and mRNA expression in the livers of mice infected with E. multilocularis metacestodes was found after treatment with verapamil.Conclusions: Verapamil exerted a parasiticidal effect against Echinococcus both in vitro and in vivo through downregulating the expression of Ca2+/CaM-CamKⅡ, which were over-activated by parasitic infection. The results suggested that Ca2+/CaM-CamKⅡ may be a novel drug-target, and verapamil was shown to be a potential anti-echinococcal drug for controlling echinococcosis in the future.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hai-Jun Gao ◽  
Xu-Dong Sun ◽  
Yan-Ping Luo ◽  
Hua-Sheng Pang ◽  
Xing-Ming Ma ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Echinococcosis caused by the larval stage of cestode of the genus Echinococcus is a parasitic zoonosis, imposing serious threat on the health of humans and animals globally. Albendazole is the drug of choice for treatment of echinococcosis, but it is difficult to meet the clinical challenge in chemotherapy due to its low curative rate and severe side effects. Hence, novel anti-parasitic targets and effective treatment alternatives are urgently needed. Previous study has showed that verapamil can suppress the growth of Echinococcus granulosus (E. granulosus) larva, but the mechanism remains unclear. The aim of the present study is to gain insight into the anti-echinococcal effect of verapamil on Echinococcus with particular focus on the regulatory role of verapamil to calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase Ⅱ (Ca2+/CaM-CamK Ⅱ) in infected mice.Methods: The anti-echinococcal effect of verapamil on E. granulosus protoscolex (PSCx) in vitro and Echinococcus multilocularis (E. multilocularis) metacestodes in infected mice were assessed. The morphological alteration of Echinococcus spp. induced by verapamil was observed by scanning electron microscope (SEM), and the changes of calcium content in both parasite and mice sera and livers were measured by SEM-energy dispersive spectrometer, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry and alizarin red staining accordingly. Additionally, the changes on the protein and mRNA levels of CaM and CamK Ⅱ in infected mice, and on the mRNA levels of CamK Ⅱ in E. granulosus PSCx after treatment of verapamil were evaluated by immunohistochemistry or/and real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR).Results: In vitro, E. granulosus PSCx could be killed by verapamil at 0.5 μg/mL or more within 8 days. Under these conditions, the ultrastructure of PSCx was damaged and accompanied with obvious calcium loss and down-regulation of CamK Ⅱ mRNA. In vivo, the weight and the calcium content of E. multilocularis metacestodes from the mice were reduced after treatment with verapamil at 40 mg/kg, meanwhile, an elevation of calcium content in the serum and liver of infected mice was observed. In addition, down-regulation of both the over-expressed CaM and CamK Ⅱ proteins and mRNAs in the liver of mice infected with E. multilocularis metacestodes were found after treatment of verapamil.Conclusions: Verapamil exerted a parasiticidal activity on Echinococcus both in vitro and in vivo through down-regulation of Ca2+/CaM-CamK Ⅱ that was over-activated by parasitic infection. It has been speculated that the Ca2+/CaM-CamK Ⅱ can be a novel drug-target and verapamil is shown to be a potential anti-echinococcal drug for controlling echinococcosis in the future.


BMC Cancer ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chengwu Xiao ◽  
Wei Zhang ◽  
Meimian Hua ◽  
Huan Chen ◽  
Bin Yang ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The tripartite motif (TRIM) family proteins exhibit oncogenic roles in various cancers. The roles of TRIM27, a member of the TRIM super family, in renal cell carcinoma (RCC) remained unexplored. In the current study, we aimed to investigate the clinical impact and roles of TRIM27 in the development of RCC. Methods The mRNA levels of TRIM27 and Kaplan–Meier survival of RCC were analyzed from The Cancer Genome Atlas database. Real-time PCR and Western blotting were used to measure the mRNA and protein levels of TRIM27 both in vivo and in vitro. siRNA and TRIM27 were exogenously overexpressed in RCC cell lines to manipulate TRIM27 expression. Results We discovered that TRIM27 was elevated in RCC patients, and the expression of TRIM27 was closely correlated with poor prognosis. The loss of function and gain of function results illustrated that TRIM27 promotes cell proliferation and inhibits apoptosis in RCC cell lines. Furthermore, TRIM27 expression was positively associated with NF-κB expression in patients with RCC. Blocking the activity of NF-κB attenuated the TRIM27-mediated enhancement of proliferation and inhibition of apoptosis. TRIM27 directly interacted with Iκbα, an inhibitor of NF-κB, to promote its ubiquitination, and the inhibitory effects of TRIM27 on Iκbα led to NF-κB activation. Conclusions Our results suggest that TRIM27 exhibits an oncogenic role in RCC by regulating NF-κB signaling. TRIM27 serves as a specific prognostic indicator for RCC, and strategies targeting the suppression of TRIM27 function may shed light on future therapeutic approaches.


Reproduction ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 139 (4) ◽  
pp. 759-769 ◽  
Author(s):  
F P Yuan ◽  
X Li ◽  
J Lin ◽  
C Schwabe ◽  
E E Büllesbach ◽  
...  

LH receptor knockout (LhrKO) male mice exhibit a bilateral cryptorchidism resulting from a developmental defect in the gubernaculum during the inguinoscrotal phase of testis descent, which is corrected by testosterone replacement therapy (TRT).In vivoandin vitroexperiments were conducted to investigate the roles of the androgen receptor (AR) and RXFP2 signals in regulation of gubernacular development inLhrKO animals. This study demonstrated that AR and RXFP2 proteins were expressed in the gubernaculum during the entire postnatal period. TRT normalized gubernacular RXFP2 protein levels inLhrKO mice. Organ and primary cell cultures of gubernacula showed that 5α-dihydrotestosterone (DHT) upregulated the expression ofRxfp2which was abolished by the addition of an AR antagonist, flutamide. A single s.c. testosterone injection also led to a significant increase inRxfp2mRNA levels in a time-dependent fashion inLhrKO animals. DHT, natural and synthetic insulin-like peptide 3 (INSL3), or relaxin alone did not affect proliferation of gubernacular mesenchymal cells, while co-treatments of DHT with either INSL3 or relaxin resulted in an increase in cell proliferation, and they also enhanced the mesenchymal cell differentiation toward the myogenic pathway, which included a decrease in a mesenchymal cell marker, CD44 and the expression of troponin. These effects were attenuated by the addition of flutamide, siRNA-mediatedRxfp2knockdown, or by an INSL3 antagonist. Co-administration of an INSL3 antagonist curtailed TRT-induced inguinoscrotal testis descent inLhrKO mice. Our findings indicate that the RXFP2 signaling pathway plays an important role in mediating androgen action to stimulate gubernaculum development during inguinoscrotal testis descent.


2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhuo-yue Song ◽  
Mengru Zhu ◽  
Jun Wu ◽  
Tian Yu ◽  
Yao Chen ◽  
...  

The effects of Cucumaria frondosa polysaccharides (CFP) on renal interstitial fibrosis via regulating phosphatidylinositol-3-hydroxykinase/protein kinase-B/Nuclear factor-κB (PI3K/AKT/NF-κB) signaling pathway were investigated in vivo and in vitro in this research. A...


1992 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 1507-1514
Author(s):  
C L Denis ◽  
S C Fontaine ◽  
D Chase ◽  
B E Kemp ◽  
L T Bemis

Four ADR1c mutations that occur close to Ser-230 of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae transcriptional activator ADR1 and which greatly enhance the ability of ADR1 to activate ADH2 expression under glucose-repressed conditions have been shown to reduce or eliminate cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase (cAPK) phosphorylation of Ser-230 in vitro. In addition, unregulated cAPK expression in vivo blocks ADH2 depression in an ADR1-dependent fashion in which ADR1c mutations display decreased sensitivity to unregulated cAPK activity. Taken together, these data have suggested that ADR1c mutations enhance ADR1 activity by blocking cAPK phosphorylation and inactivation of Ser-230. We have isolated and characterized an additional 17 ADR1c mutations, defining 10 different amino acid changes, that were located in the region defined by amino acids 227 through 239 of ADR1. Three observations, however, indicate that the ADR1c phenotype is not simply equivalent to a lack of cAPK phosphorylation. First, only some of these newly isolated ADR1c mutations affected the ability of yeast cAPK to phosphorylate corresponding synthetic peptides modeled on the 222 to 234 region of ADR1 in vitro. Second, we observed that strains lacking cAPK activity did not display enhanced ADH2 expression under glucose growth conditions. Third, when Ser-230 was mutated to a nonphosphorylatable residue, lack of cAPK activity led to a substantial increase in ADH2 expression under glucose-repressed conditions. Thus, while cAPK controls ADH2 expression and ADR1 is required for this control, cAPK acts by a mechanism that is independent of effects on ADR1 Ser-230. It was also observed that deletion of the ADR1c region resulted in an ADR1c phenotype. The ADR1c region is, therefore, involved in maintaining ADR1 in an inactive form. ADR1c mutations may block the binding of a repressor to ADR1 or alter the structure of ADR1 so that transcriptional activation regions become unmasked.


1992 ◽  
Vol 12 (10) ◽  
pp. 4478-4485 ◽  
Author(s):  
L Li ◽  
R Heller-Harrison ◽  
M Czech ◽  
E N Olson

Differentiation of skeletal muscle cells is inhibited by the cyclic AMP (cAMP) signal transduction pathway. Here we report that the catalytic subunit of cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA) can substitute for cAMP and suppress muscle-specific transcription by silencing the activity of the MyoD family of regulatory factors, which includes MyoD, myogenin, myf5, and MRF4. Repression by the PKA catalytic (C) subunit is directed at the consensus sequence CANNTG, the target for DNA binding and transcriptional activation by these myogenic regulators. Phosphopeptide mapping of myogenin in vitro and in vivo revealed two PKA phosphorylation sites, both within the basic region. However, repression of myogenin function by PKA does not require direct phosphorylation of these sites but instead involves an indirect mechanism with one or more intermediate steps. Regulation of the transcriptional activity of the MyoD family by modulation of the cAMP signaling pathway may account for the inhibitory effects of certain peptide growth factors on muscle-specific gene expression and may also determine the responsiveness of different cell types to myogenic conversion by these myogenic regulators.


1999 ◽  
Vol 19 (7) ◽  
pp. 5061-5072 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mirjana Andjelković ◽  
Sauveur-Michel Maira ◽  
Peter Cron ◽  
Peter J. Parker ◽  
Brian A. Hemmings

ABSTRACT Protein kinase B (PKB or Akt), a downstream effector of phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI 3-kinase), has been implicated in insulin signaling and cell survival. PKB is regulated by phosphorylation on Thr308 by 3-phosphoinositide-dependent protein kinase 1 (PDK1) and on Ser473 by an unidentified kinase. We have used chimeric molecules of PKB to define different steps in the activation mechanism. A chimera which allows inducible membrane translocation by lipid second messengers that activate in vivo protein kinase C and not PKB was created. Following membrane attachment, the PKB fusion protein was rapidly activated and phosphorylated at the two key regulatory sites, Ser473 and Thr308, in the absence of further cell stimulation. This finding indicated that both PDK1 and the Ser473 kinase may be localized at the membrane of unstimulated cells, which was confirmed for PDK1 by immunofluorescence studies. Significantly, PI 3-kinase inhibitors prevent the phosphorylation of both regulatory sites of the membrane-targeted PKB chimera. Furthermore, we show that PKB activated at the membrane was rapidly dephosphorylated following inhibition of PI 3-kinase, with Ser473 being a better substrate for protein phosphatase. Overall, the results demonstrate that PKB is stringently regulated by signaling pathways that control both phosphorylation/activation and dephosphorylation/inactivation of this pivotal protein kinase.


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