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Query: EC:2.7.10.1 (
ERK
)
95,504
document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)
Medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) is a malignant tumor of the calcitonin-secreting parafollicular C cells of the thyroid occurring sporadically and as a component of the multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2/familial medullary thyroid carcinoma syndrome. The primary genetic cause of multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2 is germline mutation of the
RET
protooncogene. Somatic point mutations in
RET
also occur in sporadic MTC. Although
RET
mutation is likely sufficient to cause C-cell hyperplasia, the precursor lesion to MTC, tumor progression is thought to be due to clonal expansion caused by the accumulation of somatic events. Using the genome-scanning technique comparative genomic hybridization, we identified chromosomal imbalances that occur in MTC including deletions of chromosomes 1p, 3q26.3-q27, 4, 9q13-q22, 13q, and 22q and amplifications of chromosome 19. These regions house known tumor suppressor genes as well as genes encoding subunits of the multicomponent complex of glycosylphosphatidylinositol-linked proteins (
glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor
family receptors alpha-2-4) and their ligands
glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor
, neurturin, persephin, and artemin that facilitate
RET
dimerization and downstream signaling. Chromosomal imbalances in the MTC cell line TT were largely identical to those identified in primary MTC tumors, consolidating its use as a model for studying MTC.
...
PMID:Genome-wide copy number imbalances identified in familial and sporadic medullary thyroid carcinoma. 1267 85
Effects of endothelin-1 (ET-1) on
glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor
(
GDNF
) production in cultured astrocytes were examined. Treatment of cultured astrocytes with ET-1 (100 nM) increased mRNA levels of
GDNF
in 1-6h. The effect of ET-1 was inhibited by BQ788, an ET(B) receptor antagonist, but not by FR139317, an ET(A) receptor antagonist. ET-1 stimulated release of
GDNF
into culture medium. Dexamethasone (1 microM) and pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate (PDTC, 100 microM), which inhibit activation of NFkappaB, prevented the increases in
GDNF
mRNA by H(2)O(2). In contrast, the effect of ET-1 was not affected by dexamethasone and PDTC. The increase of astrocytic
GDNF
mRNA by ET-1 was inhibited by BAPTA/AM (30 microM) and PD98059 (50 microM), but not by calphostin C, staurosporine, and cyclosporine A. These results suggest that ET-1 stimulated expression of astrocytic
GDNF
through ET(B) receptor-mediated increases in cytosolic Ca(2+) and
ERK
activation.
...
PMID:Endothelin-1 stimulates glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor expression in cultured rat astrocytes. 1268 49
N-CAM has now been identified as a receptor for
glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor
(
GDNF
). This finding solves a long-standing question regarding
RET
-independent
GDNF
signaling, and reveals a novel pathway distinct from both
GDNF
-
RET
and N-CAM-N-CAM signaling. Functional assays of Schwann cell migration and axon growth of CNS neurons suggest physiological significance for this
GDNF
-N-CAM pathway.
...
PMID:Extracellular crosstalk: when GDNF meets N-CAM. 1283 45
Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor
(
GDNF
) activates c-Ret tyrosine kinase and several downstream intracellular pathways; the biological effects caused by the activation of each of these pathways, however, remain to be elucidated. Here we report the ability of
GDNF
to induce proliferation, rather than differentiation, of neuroblastoma cells (SH-SY5Y) by targeting the signaling pathway responsible for mediating this proliferative effect.
GDNF
induces the phosphorylation of Akt and p70S6 kinase (p70S6K) in SH-SY5Y cells in which Ret protein expression is relatively low. Interestingly, treating SH-SY5Y cells with retinoic acid greatly increases Ret protein levels and
GDNF
-induced Ret tyrosine phosphorylation, but does not affect the mitogenic action of
GDNF
and the activation of the Akt/p70S6K pathway. In contrast, the activation of the
ERK
pathway and the resulting induction of immediate-early genes parallel the increases in Ret protein levels. Rapamycin, a specific inhibitor of p70S6K activation by the mammalian target of rapamycin, completely prevents
GDNF
-induced proliferation and activation of p70S6K. These results suggest that
GDNF
promotes cell proliferation via the activation of p70S6K, independent of the
ERK
signaling pathway, and that
GDNF
activates the Akt/p70S6K pathway more efficiently than the
ERK
pathway in the cells in which Ret expression is low.
...
PMID:Mitogenic effect of glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor is dependent on the activation of p70S6 kinase, but independent of the activation of ERK and up-regulation of Ret in SH-SY5Y cells. 1291 61
The
RET
receptor tyrosine kinase is activated by binding to a ligand complex formed by a member of the
glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor
(
GDNF
) family of neurotrophic factors bound to its cognate
GDNF
-family receptor-alpha (GFR alpha) glycosylphosphatidylinositol-linked co-receptor. Molecular modeling studies of the extracellular domain of
RET
(RETECD) have revealed the existence of four cadherin-like domains (CLD1-4) followed by a cysteine-rich domain. Cross-linking experiments have indicated that the RETECD makes direct contacts with both the
GDNF
ligand and GFR alpha 1 molecule in the complex, although it has low or no detectable affinity for either component alone. We have exploited sequence and functional divergences between the ectodomains of mammalian and amphibian
RET
molecules to map binding determinants in the human RETECD responsible for its interaction with the
GDNF
-GFR alpha 1 complex by homologue-scanning mutagenesis. We found that Xenopus RETECD was unable to bind to
GDNF
-GFR alpha-1 or neurturin (NTN)-GFR alpha-2 complexes of mammalian origin. However, a chimeric molecule containing CLD1, -2, and -3 from human RETECD, but neither domain alone, had similar binding activity as compared with wild type human RETECD, suggesting the existence of an extended ligand binding surface within the three N-terminal cadherin-like domains of human RETECD. Subsequent loss-of-function experiments at higher resolution identified three small subsets of residues, mapping on the same face of the molecular model of
RET
CLD1, that were required for the interaction of human RETECD with the
GDNF
-GFR alpha 1 complex. Additional experiments demonstrated that N-linked glycosylation of human RETECD was not required for ligand binding. Based on these observations, we propose a model for the assembly and architecture of the
GDNF
-GFR alpha 1-
RET
complex.
...
PMID:Identification of a surface for binding to the GDNF-GFR alpha 1 complex in the first cadherin-like domain of RET. 1451 71
In the developing kidney, activation of the rearrangement during transfection tyrosine kinase by
glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor
(
GDNF
) is required for normal branching of the ureteric bud epithelium [corrected]. By differential display analysis we identified a novel
GDNF
-inducible gene (named GZF1) with a BTB/POZ (broad complex, tramtrack, and bric-a-brac)/(poxvirus and zinc finger) domain and 10 tandemly repeated zinc finger motifs. The up-regulation of the GZF1 gene showed two peaks at 1 h and 24-48 h after
GDNF
stimulation by Northern blotting. The late induction was also found at protein levels by Western blotting with anti-GZF1 antibody. As observed for other proteins with the BTB/POZ domain, the GZF1 protein had strong transcriptional repressive activity. Intriguingly, its expression was detected at high levels in branching ureteric buds and collecting ducts of mouse metanephric kidney in which
RET
was also expressed. Antisense phosphorothioated oligodeoxynucleotides of the GZF1 gene markedly impaired the ureteric bud branching in the metanephric organ culture, suggesting that the induction of GZF1 expression via the
GDNF
/
RET
signaling system is required for renal branching morphogenesis.
...
PMID:Identification of a novel glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor-inducible gene required for renal branching morphogenesis. 1452 71
Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor
(
GDNF
) plays a critical role in neurodevelopment and survival of midbrain dopaminergic and spinal motor neurons in vitro and in vivo. The biological actions of
GDNF
are mediated by a two-receptor complex consisting of a glycosylphosphatidylinositol-linked cell surface molecule, the
GDNF
family receptor alpha1 (GFRalpha1), and
receptor protein tyrosine kinase
Ret. Although structural analysis of
GDNF
has been extensively examined, less is known about the structural basis of GFRalpha1 function. In this study, based on evolutionary trace method and relative solvent accessibility prediction of residues, a set of trace residues that are solvent-accessible was selected for site-directed mutagenesis. A series of GFRalpha1 mutations was made, and PC12 cell lines stably expressing different GFRalpha1 mutants were generated. According to the survival and differentiation responses of these stable PC12 cells upon
GDNF
stimulation and the
GDNF
-GFRalpha1-Ret interaction assay, residues 152NN153, Arg259, and 316SNS318 in the GFRalpha1 central region were found to be critical for GFRalpha1 binding to
GDNF
and eliciting downstream signal transduction. The single mutation R259A in the GFRalpha1 molecule simultaneously lost its binding ability to
GDNF
and Ret. However N152A/N153A or S316A/N317A/S318A mutation in the GFRalpha1 molecule still retained the ability to bind with Ret. These findings suggest that distinct structural elements in GFRalpha1 may be involved in binding to
GDNF
and Ret.
...
PMID:Identification of the key amino acids of glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor family receptor alpha1 involved in its biological function. 1456 51
Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor
(
GDNF
) signals through multisubunit receptor complex consisting of
RET
tyrosine kinase and a glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored coreceptor called
GDNF
family receptor alpha1 (GFRalpha1). In the current study, we cloned a human SEP1 gene as a
GDNF
-inducible gene using human neuroblastoma cells that express
RET
and GFRalpha1. The induction of the SEP1 gene showed two peaks at 0.5-2 h and 24-48 h after
GDNF
stimulation by Northern blotting and quantitative real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. The late induction was also confirmed at protein levels by Western blotting with anti-SEP1 antibody. Immunostaining revealed that the expression of the SEP1 protein was detected in cell body, elongated neurites and growth cone-like structure of neuroblastoma cells treated with
GDNF
. In addition, we found a high level of SEP1 expression in neurons of the dorsal root and superior cervical ganglia and motor neurons of the spinal cord of mice in which
RET
is also expressed. SEP1 was co-immunoprecipitated with alpha- and beta-tubulins from the lysate of mouse brain. These results thus suggested that SEP1 is a
GDNF
-inducible and microtubule-associated protein that may play a role in the nervous system.
...
PMID:Identification of human SEP1 as a glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor-inducible protein and its expression in the nervous system. 1458 Sep 40
The catalytic and signaling activities of
RET
, a receptor-type tyrosine kinase, are regulated by the autophosphorylation of several tyrosine residues in the cytoplasmic region of
RET
. Some studies have revealed a few possible autophosphorylation sites of
RET
by [(32)P]phosphopeptide mapping or by using specific anti-phosphotyrosine antibodies. To ultimately identify these and other autophosphorylation sites of
RET
, we performed mass spectrometry analysis of an originally prepared
RET
recombinant protein. Both the autophosphorylation and kinase activity of myelin basic protein as an external substrate of the recombinant RET protein were substantially elevated in the presence of ATP without stimulation by a
glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor
, a natural ligand for
RET
. Mass spectrometric analysis revealed that
RET
Tyr(806), Tyr(809), Tyr(900), Tyr(905), Tyr(981), Tyr(1062), Tyr(1090), and Tyr(1096) were autophosphorylation sites. Levels of autophosphorylation and kinase activity of
RET
-MEN2A (multiple endocrine neoplasia 2A), a constitutively active form of
RET
with substitution of Tyr(900) by phenylalanine (Y900F), were comparable with those of original
RET
-MEN2A, whereas those of the mutant Y905F were greatly decreased. Interestingly, those of a double mutant, Y900F/Y905F, were completely abolished. Both the kinase activity and transforming activity were impaired in the mutants Y806F and Y809F. These results provide convincing evidence for both previously suggested and new tyrosine autophosphorylation sites of
RET
as well as for novel functions of Tyr(806), Tyr(809), and Tyr(900) phosphorylation in both catalytic kinase activities and cell growth. The significance of the identified autophosphorylation sites in various protein-tyrosine kinases registered in a data base is discussed in this paper.
...
PMID:Identification of RET autophosphorylation sites by mass spectrometry. 1471 13
Neuroblastoma (NB) is a childhood cancer that arises in the adrenal gland and often shows differentiated neuronal and glial elements. The
RET
receptor signal pathway is functional in most NB, while loss of nerve growth factor (NGF) receptor (trkA) gene expression correlates with an aggressive phenotype. Thus, we hypothesized that the
RET
and
TRKA
signal pathways collaborate to instruct NB differentiation, reminiscent of normal neuronal maturation. Here, we demonstrate that activation of the
RET
receptor by
glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor
(
GDNF
) increases expression of the
RET
receptor complex in a panel of malignant human NB cell lines, indicative of a positive feedback mechanism.
GDNF
also induces growth cessation concomitant with an arrest of cells in the G(0)/G(1) phase of the cell cycle. Furthermore,
GDNF
synergizes with ciliary neurotrophic factor (CNTF) to enhance
TRKA
receptor expression, thereby strengthening the NGF-mediated differentiation signal. Differentiated NB cells downregulate expression of the amplified N-myc gene, concurrent with the arrest of cell proliferation, while expressing neuron-specific markers (i.e., SCG10). Interestingly, maintenance of differentiated NB cells in culture is independent of the trophic activity of
GDNF
, but depends on
TRKA
signaling, thereby re-enacting the differentiation of normal sympathoadrenal (SA) progenitor cells.
...
PMID:The RET and TRKA pathways collaborate to regulate neuroblastoma differentiation. 1471 26
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