Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
8
pubmed:dateCreated
2011-2-21
pubmed:abstractText
Classical mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinases are activated by dual phosphorylation of the Thr-Xxx-Tyr motif in their activation loop, which is catalyzed by members of the MAP kinase kinase family. The atypical MAP kinases extracellular signal-regulated kinase 3 (ERK3) and ERK4 contain a single phospho-acceptor site in this segment and are not substrates of MAP kinase kinases. Previous studies have shown that ERK3 and ERK4 are phosphorylated on activation loop residue Ser-189/Ser-186, resulting in their catalytic activation. However, the identity of the protein kinase mediating this regulatory event has remained elusive. We have used an unbiased biochemical purification approach to isolate the kinase activity responsible for ERK3 Ser-189 phosphorylation. Here, we report the identification of group I p21-activated kinases (PAKs) as ERK3/ERK4 activation loop kinases. We show that group I PAKs phosphorylate ERK3 and ERK4 on Ser-189 and Ser-186, respectively, both in vitro and in vivo, and that expression of activated Rac1 augments this response. Reciprocally, silencing of PAK1/2/3 expression by RNA interference (RNAi) completely abolishes Rac1-induced Ser-189 phosphorylation of ERK3. Importantly, we demonstrate that PAK-mediated phosphorylation of ERK3/ERK4 results in their enzymatic activation and in downstream activation of MAP kinase-activated protein kinase 5 (MK5) in vivo. Our results reveal that group I PAKs act as upstream activators of ERK3 and ERK4 and unravel a novel PAK-ERK3/ERK4-MK5 signaling pathway.
pubmed:grant
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:chemical
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:month
Feb
pubmed:issn
1083-351X
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Electronic
pubmed:day
25
pubmed:volume
286
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
6470-8
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:year
2011
pubmed:articleTitle
Activation loop phosphorylation of ERK3/ERK4 by group I p21-activated kinases (PAKs) defines a novel PAK-ERK3/4-MAPK-activated protein kinase 5 signaling pathway.
pubmed:affiliation
Institut de Recherche en Immunologie et Cancérologie, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec H3C 3J7, Canada.
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't, Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural