Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: EC:2.7.10.2 (focal adhesion kinase)
 44,029 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

A PMMA-based polymer previously shown to inhibit cell proliferation was compared to untreated PMMA. Conformation of adsorbed proteins, cell adhesion, cytoskeleton formation, and integrin activation were examined. Fibronectin adsorbed in a different conformation on the PMMA-based polymer exposing a different balance of the heparin-binding domains. Fibroblasts attached in equal numbers to both surfaces over a 4-h period, but the integrins involved in the adhesion process elicited different intracellular signaling pathways. Cells attached to PMMA showed activation of FAK and MAP as they spread using an assembled actin cytoskeleton. Cells attached to the polymer showed early and strong MAP activity that resulted in nonassembly of the actin cytoskeleton and sub-optimal cell spreading. We conclude that the chemistry of the polymer surface dictated a different conformation of the adsorbed proteins that resulted in alternative cell signaling and diminished cell spreading. This accounted for the biological inhibition previously reported on the PMMA-based polymer.
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PMID:Alternative intracellular signaling mechanism involved in the inhibitory biological response of functionalized PMMA-based polymers. 1274 96

GLP-1, incretin with insulin-independent antidiabetic properties, is insulinomimetic upon glucose metabolism in extrapancreatic tissues, acting through specific receptors not associated to adenylate cyclase activation. We investigated the role of enzymes mediating insulin actions, in the GLP-1-induced glycogen synthase a activation in rat hepatocytes. GLP-1, like insulin, activates PI3K/PKB, p70s6k, p44 and p42 MAP-kinase. Wortmannin (PI3K/PKB inhibitor) blocked the stimulatory action of insulin on glycogen synthase a and reduced that of GLP-1; rapamycin (p70s6k inhibitor) was ineffective and PD98059 (MEK/MAPK inhibitor) decreased only the insulin effect; okadaic acid (PP-2A inhibitor) was ineffective, while TNFalpha (PP-1 inhibitor) blocked the action of insulin and reduced that of GLP-1; H-7 or Ro 31-8220 (PKC inhibitors) decreased the GLP-1 effect, while only H-7 reduced that of insulin. The activation of PI3K/PKB, PKC and PP-1, but not PP-2A, seems to mediate the GLP-1 stimulatory action on glycogen synthase a in rat hepatocytes, while MAPKs and p70s6k could participate in other GLP-1 effects.
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PMID:Cell signalling of the GLP-1 action in rat liver. 1285 Feb 80

We have reported previously that reactivation of progesterone receptor (PR) expression in estrogen receptor (ER)- and PR-negative MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells enabled progesterone to inhibit cell growth and invasiveness, and to induce remarkable focal adhesions. The present study addressed molecular mechanisms that mediate these anticancer effects of progesterone in the PR-transfected breast cancer cells ABC28. In response to progesterone treatment are the marked up-regulation of cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor protein p21WAF1/CIP1 and decreased expression of cyclin A, cyclin B1, and cyclin D1 that are required for G1 progression and during cell mitosis. Progesterone also induced down-regulation of phosphorylated MAPK (p42/44 MAPK). Furthermore, this study also demonstrated that MEK inhibitor PD98059 that inhibits the phosphorylation of p42/44 MAPK also caused reduction of cyclin D1 level and inhibition of cell proliferation. These results suggest that inhibition of p42/44 MAPK pathway is part of the mechanisms mediating progesterone's growth-inhibitory effect. On the other hand, progesterone-induced focal adhesion is mediated by separate pathway. Whereas PD98059 exhibited no effects on cell adhesion, inhibitory antibody to beta1-integrin was able to reverse progesterone-induced focal adhesion and progesterone-induced increase in the phosphorylation of focal adhesion kinase. On the other hand, beta1-integrin antibody had no effect on progesterone-mediated growth inhibition and on progesterone-mediated expression of cyclins p21CIP1/WAF1 and phosphorylation of P42/P44 MAPK. In the context of complex functions of progesterone in breast cancer and reproductive organs, identification of distinct pathways offers new strategies for designing therapeutic agents to target the specific pathway so as to minimize the side effects.
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PMID:Distinct molecular pathways mediate progesterone-induced growth inhibition and focal adhesion. 1297 Jan 68

Here we describe a new approach to study apoptosis pathways using multiplex suspension arrays. Apoptosis was induced in Jurkat T cells using the protein synthesis inhibitor, anisomycin. Cells grown in 96-well plates were treated with anisomycin for up to 7 h, washed, and lysed in their respective wells. Samples of each lysate were analyzed using Beadlyte suspension arrays consisting of total Akt/PKB, phosphorylated Akt/PKB, active caspase-3, and single-stranded DNA (ssDNA)-specific Beadmate microspheres and quantified with the X-MAP system. We found that phosphorylated Akt levels dropped dramatically with 2 h or more of anisomycin treatment, whereas active caspase-3 levels rose sharply with 2 h of treatment, signifying the onset of apoptosis. Longer incubation with anisomycin showed increases in ssDNA, which is consistent with the characteristic degradation of DNA that occurs in late-stage apoptosis. This approach demonstrates how apoptosis pathways can be studied from a small amount of sample without the use of more lengthy techniques such as immunoprecipitation or Western blotting. The suspension array is being expanded to measure many other intracellular proteins including posttranslational modifications and should prove to be extremely useful for studying apoptosis and other important cellular pathways.
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PMID:Analysis of apoptotic cells using Beadlyte suspension arrays. 1451 68

GnRH agonist therapy is known to reduce uterine leiomyoma volume, although the molecular mechanisms responsible for this effect remain poorly understood. In this study, we have investigated the molecular mechanisms involved in the anti-proliferative effect of a GnRH agonist, leuprolide acetate (LA), in uterine leiomyomas obtained from six patients treated with LA for 3 months before surgery (group B), compared with tumours from six untreated patients (group A). To this end, we have evaluated the expression and the activity of molecules involved in the regulation of cell survival and proliferation. In group B, the total activity of PI3K was reduced by 60% compared with control samples. Furthermore, LA caused a reduction of PKB activation of approximately 50%, measured as serine 473 phosphorylation. In parallel with PKB reduction in LA samples, we observed a 60% reduction in the phosphorylation of its substrate BAD. While Bcl-xL/BAD association was not significantly modified in LA-treated leiomyomas, BAD/14.3.3 interaction was reduced, due to a 50% decreased 14.3.3 expression. In addition, LA was able to reduce the expression of the antiapoptotic proteins FLIP and PED/PEA15 by 70 and 50% respectively, compared with control samples. We next evaluated the activation of MAP kinases in leiomyomas. Activation of p42 and p44 MAP kinase isoforms was increased by 30% in group B. However, the phosphorylation of the transcription factor Elk1 was not increased in a similar fashion in LA-treated leiomyomas compared with group A. Thus, these data suggest that LA reduction of leiomyoma volume is mediated at least in part by a decreased activation of the PI3K/PKB survival pathway and by the suppression of antiapoptotic factors.
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PMID:Molecular mechanisms involved in GnRH analogue-related apoptosis for uterine leiomyomas. 1466 5

Keratinocyte growth factor (KGF or FGF-7) stimulates alveolar type II cell proliferation, but little is known about the signaling pathways involved. We investigated the role of the ERK (p42/44 mitogen activated protein [MAP] kinase) and phosphatidylinositol 3-OH kinase (PI3 kinase) pathways on alveolar type II cell proliferation and differentiation. Rat type II cells were cultured on tissue culture plastic and Matrigel in the presence or absence of KGF and specific chemical inhibitors PD98059, LY294002, and rapamycin at various concentrations. Proliferation was measured by thymidine incorporation and DNA quantitation, and differentiation was measured by expression of surfactant protein A and alkaline phosphatase. We demonstrate that KGF activates distal effectors of the PI3 kinase pathway, PKB/Akt, and p70S6 kinase, as well as p42/44 MAP kinase proteins. Inhibition of these pathways with PD98059, LY294002, or rapamycin inhibited type II cell proliferation but had no significant effect on differentiation. KGF did not activate the c-Jun kinase or p38 MAP kinase pathways. We conclude that the p42/44 MAP kinase and PI3 kinase pathways are important in regulating alveolar type II cell proliferation in response to KGF.
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PMID:Keratinocyte growth factor stimulates alveolar type II cell proliferation through the extracellular signal-regulated kinase and phosphatidylinositol 3-OH kinase pathways. 1474 97

The maintenance of murine embryonic stem (ES) cell self-renewal is regulated by leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF)-dependent activation of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) and LIF-independent mechanisms including Nanog, BMP2/4, and Wnt signaling. Here we demonstrate a previously undescribed role for phosphoinositide 3-kinases (PI3Ks) in regulation of murine ES cell self-renewal. Treatment with the reversible PI3K inhibitor, LY294002, or more specific inhibition of class I(A) PI3K via regulated expression of dominant negative Deltap85, led to a reduction in the ability of LIF to maintain self-renewal, with cells concomitantly adopting a differentiated morphology. Inhibition of PI3Ks reduced basal and LIF-stimulated phosphorylation of PKB/Akt, GSK3alpha/beta, and S6 proteins. Importantly, LY294002 and Deltap85 expression had no effect on LIF-induced phosphorylation of STAT3 at Tyr(705), but did augment LIF-induced phosphorylation of ERKs in both short and long term incubations. Subsequently, we demonstrate that inhibition of MAP-Erk kinases (MEKs) reverses the effects of PI3K inhibition on self-renewal in a time- and dose-dependent manner, suggesting that the elevated ERK activity observed upon PI3K inhibition contributes to the functional response we observe. Surprisingly, upon long term inhibition of PI3Ks we observed a reduction in phosphorylation of beta-catenin, the target of GSK-3 action in the canonical Wnt pathway, although no consistent alterations in cytosolic levels of beta-catenin were observed, indicating this pathway is not playing a major role downstream of PI3Ks. Our studies support a role for PI3Ks in regulation of self-renewal and increase our understanding of the molecular signaling components involved in regulation of stem cell fate.
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PMID:Regulation of embryonic stem cell self-renewal by phosphoinositide 3-kinase-dependent signaling. 1532 62

The molecular mechanisms that control the mycotoxin-mediated effects in porcine endometrial cells are far from being completely understood. Recent results show that they could inhibit cell proliferation. Therefore, the present study investigated the effects of the mycotoxins alpha-zearalenol (alpha-ZOL) and beta-zearalenol (beta-ZOL) on a cellular level. Mainly, the abundance and phosphorylation state (activity) of the cell cycle-dependent kinases MAPK and Akt (PKB) and their potential targets eIF4E (eukaryotic initiation factor 4E) and 4E-BP1 (4E binding protein, eIF4E repressor protein) were investigated. The results show that alpha-ZOL has apparently only a slight influence on the phosphorylation state of MAP kinases, Akt and on eIF4E and 4E-BP1. In contrast, their phosphorylation was strongly reduced in beta-ZOL-treated cells in a concentration-dependent manner. Therefore, our results indicate that beta-ZOL potentially not only influences transcription but also effects gene expression on translational level. The effect of alpha- and beta-ZOL on endometrial cell proliferation and their toxicology are discussed.
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PMID:Influence of the mycotoxins alpha- and beta-zearalenol (ZOL) on regulators of cap-dependent translation control in pig endometrial cells. 1550 84

The effects of oxidative stress on collagen and DNA biosynthesis, beta-galactosidase and prolidase activities, and the expression of prolidase, beta1-integrin receptor, FAK, IGF-IR and MAP-kinases (ERK1, ERK2) were evaluated in human dermal fibroblasts. Subconfluent cells were subjected to repetitive stresses with 30 microM t-BHP for 1 hour per day over the course of 5 days. It was found that oxidative stress induced the inhibition of collagen biosynthesis in these cells in a time-dependent manner. Exposure of the cells to 5 stresses contributed to a decrease in collagen and DNA biosynthesis to about 30% and 50% of the control values, respectively. Prolidase activity and expression were only suppressed in fibroblasts subjected to 1 and 3 stresses. In these cells prolidase activity was decreased by about 20%. As a result of 5 stresses, no further inhibition of prolidase activity occurred; however, expression of the enzyme was slightly increased, as demonstrated by Western blot analysis. It was found that these phenomena were neither related to the expression of beta1-integrin receptor nor to that of FAK. However, the exposure of the cells to 3 and 5 stresses contributed to a distinct decrease in IGF-IR and MAP-kinases (ERK1, ERK2) expression, which is probably responsible for the collagen biosynthesis inhibition.
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PMID:Oxidative stress induces IGF-I receptor signaling disturbances in cultured human dermal fibroblasts. A possible mechanism for collagen biosynthesis inhibition. 1564 87

Prolidase [E.C. 3.4.13.9] is a cytosolic imidodipeptidase that plays an important role in collagen biosynthesis. The enzyme contributes to the recovery of proline from protein degradation products (mainly collagen) for collagen resynthesis. Prolidase activity and collagen biosynthesis are supposed to be regulated by beta(1)-integrins, which initiate a signaling pathway in which several kinases and intracellular proteins are involved, including focal adhesion kinase pp125(FAK) (FAK), Src, Shc, growth factor receptor bound protein 2 (Grb-2), son of sevenless protein (SOS), Ras, Raf and mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK), extracellular-signal regulated kinase 1 (ERK(1)) and kinase 2 (ERK(2)). We studied the effects of echistatin, a well-known disintegrin and thrombin, a serine protease capable of activation of platelet integrin alpha(2)beta(1) receptor on collagen production, prolidase activity, expression of prolidase, beta(1)-integrin receptor, FAK, SOS-protein and phosphorylated MAP-kinases (ERK(1) and ERK(2)) in confluent human dermal fibroblasts. It has been found that treatment of the cells with 100nM echistatin contributes to inhibition of collagen production, as well as prolidase activity and expression compared to control cells. These phenomena were accompanied by a decrease in the expression of FAK, SOS-protein and phosphorylated MAP-kinases, ERK(1) and ERK(2). An opposite phenomenon was observed in fibroblasts treated with 0.1IU thrombin. In this case, a significant increase in collagen production and prolidase activity, accompanied by a distinct raise in the expression of prolidase, FAK and phosphorylated MAP-kinases and a slight increase in expression of SOS compared to controls were found. The results suggest that regulation of prolidase activity and collagen biosynthesis in human dermal fibroblasts may involve beta(1)-integrin-dependent signaling.
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PMID:Differential effects of echistatin and thrombin on collagen production and prolidase activity in human dermal fibroblasts and their possible implication in beta1-integrin-mediated signaling. 1566 71


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