Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: EC:2.7.11.24 (mitogen-activated protein kinase)
 95,810 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Here we report that the beta-adrenergic agonist isoproterenol increases the activity of the stress-activated kinase p38 MAPK over 10-fold in freshly isolated rat epididymal fat cells. Stimulation of the kinase was rapid, sustained for at least 60 min and sensitive to the specific p38 MAPK inhibitor, SB 203580. Half-maximal stimulation of p38 MAPK by isoproterenol occurred at 13 nM isoproterenol. The cell permeable cyclic AMP analogue, chlorophenylthio-cyclic AMP increased p38 MAPK activity to a similar extent to isoproterenol, suggesting that the effect of the beta-adrenergic agonist is mediated via increases in the activity of cyclic-AMP dependent protein kinase. Although it had little or no effect on the activity of c-Jun N-terminal kinase, isoproterenol and a number of other treatments which activated p38 MAPK were found to stimulate AMP-activated protein kinase in fat cells. Activation of AMPK and p38 MAPK were not, however, found to be directly linked.
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PMID:The activation of p38 MAPK by the beta-adrenergic agonist isoproterenol in rat epididymal fat cells. 984 39

The myocyte enhancer factor (MEF)2 transcription factor is important for development of differentiated skeletal muscle. We investigated the regulation of MEF2 DNA binding in differentiated primary human skeletal muscle cells and isolated rat skeletal muscle after exposure to various stimuli. MEF2 DNA binding activity in nonstimulated (basal) muscle cultures was almost undetectable. Exposure of cells for 20 min to 120 nM insulin, 0.1 and 1.0 mM hydrogen peroxide, osmotic stress (400 mM mannitol), or 1.0 mM 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide-1-beta-D-ribofuranoside (AICAR) led to a profound increase in MEF2 DNA binding. To study signaling pathways mediating MEF2 activity, we preincubated human skeletal muscle cell cultures or isolated rat epitrochlearis muscles with inhibitors of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) (10 microM SB-203580), MEK1 (50 microM PD-98059), PKC (1 and 10 microM GF109203X), phosphatidylinositol (PI) 3-kinase (10 microM LY-294002), or AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK; 20 microM compound C). All stimuli resulted primarily in activation of MEF2D DNA binding. Exposure of cells to osmotic or oxidative stress increased MEF2 DNA binding via pathways that were completely blocked by MAPK inhibitors and partially blocked by inhibitors of PKC, PI 3-kinase, and AMPK. In epitrochlearis muscle, MAPK inhibitors blocked contraction but not AICAR-mediated MEF2 DNA binding. Thus activation of MEF2 in skeletal muscle is regulated via parallel intracellular signaling pathways in response to insulin, cellular stress, or activation of AMPK.
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PMID:MEF2 activation in differentiated primary human skeletal muscle cultures requires coordinated involvement of parallel pathways. 1496 Apr 15

We investigated regulation of various signal transduction pathways during oxidative stresses in the kidney of young and aged rats. Menadione-induced regulation of molecules in PI 3-kinase, MAPK, and AMPK pathways was determined in the young (2 months) and old (24 months) groups. PI 3-kinase activity and Akt phosphorylation were significantly reduced in the old compared with the young. PTEN tumor suppressor was also lower in its expression and phosphorylation levels in the old. Response of the molecules in PI 3-kinase pathway to menadione was minimized. In contrast, over 5-fold induction of ERK1/2 phosphorylation by menadione was observed in both groups. On the other hand, basal activities as well as menadione-induced activities of JNK1 and AMPK were higher in the old than in the young. While p27(Kip1), p53, and p21(Waf1) were slightly increased by menadione in both groups, the basal induction level in the old was considerably higher. In conclusion, the results suggest that the age-related down-regulation of PI 3-kinase/Akt pathway and up-regulation of JNK1, AMPK, and p53 pathways may be responsible for the increased susceptibility to oxidative stress.
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PMID:Differential regulation of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/Akt, mitogen-activated protein kinase, and AMP-activated protein kinase pathways during menadione-induced oxidative stress in the kidney of young and old rats. 1497 36

In tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum), hyperosmotic stress induces rapid activation of a 42-kD protein kinase, referred to as Nicotiana tabacum osmotic stress-activated protein kinase (NtOSAK). cDNA encoding the kinase was cloned and, based on the predicted amino acid sequence, the enzyme was assigned to the SNF1-related protein kinase type 2 (SnRK2) family. The identity of the enzyme was confirmed by immunoprecipitation of the active kinase from tobacco cells subjected to osmotic stress using antibodies raised against a peptide corresponding to the C-terminal sequence of the kinase predicted from the cloned cDNA. A detailed biochemical characterization of NtOSAK purified from stressed tobacco cells was performed. Our results show that NtOSAK is a calcium-independent Ser/Thr protein kinase. The sequence of putative phosphorylation sites recognized by NtOSAK, predicted by the computer program PREDIKIN, resembled the substrate consensus sequence defined for animal and yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) AMPK/SNF1 kinases. Our experimental data confirmed these results, as various targets for AMPK/SNF1 kinases were also efficiently phosphorylated by NtOSAK. A range of protein kinase inhibitors was tested as potential modulators of NtOSAK, but only staurosporine, a rather nonspecific protein kinase inhibitor, was found to abolish the enzyme activity. In phosphorylation reactions, NtOSAK exhibited a preference for Mg(2+) over Mn(2+) ions and an inability to use GTP instead of ATP as a phosphate donor. The enzyme activity was not modulated by 5'-AMP. To our knowledge, these results represent the first detailed biochemical characterization of a kinase of the SnRK2 family.
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PMID:Biochemical characterization of the tobacco 42-kD protein kinase activated by osmotic stress. 1546 34

Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is an autosomal dominant disorder that is characterized by benign tumors (hamartomas and hamartias) involving multiple organ systems, due to inactivating mutations in TSC1 or TSC2. Here, we review recent advances in our understanding of the growth and signaling functions of the TSC1 and TSC2 proteins. Led by seminal studies in Drosophila, the TSC1/TSC2 complex has been positioned in an ancestrally conserved signaling pathway that regulates cell growth. TSC1/TSC2 receives inputs from at least three major signaling pathways in the form of kinase-mediated phosphorylation events that regulate its function as a GTPase activating protein (GAP): the PI3K-Akt pathway, the ERK1/2-RSK1 pathway and the LKB1-AMPK pathway. TSC1/TSC2 functions as a GAP towards Rheb, which is a major regulator of the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR). In the absence of either TSC1 or TSC2, high levels of Rheb-GTP lead to constitutive activation of mTOR-raptor signaling, thereby leading to enhanced and deregulated protein synthesis and cell growth. As a specific inhibitor of mTOR, rapamycin has therapeutic potential for the treatment of TSC hamartomas.
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PMID:Tuberous sclerosis: a GAP at the crossroads of multiple signaling pathways. 1624 23

The cytosolic protein Bax plays a key role in apoptosis by migrating to mitochondria and releasing proapoptotic proteins from the mitochondrial intermembrane space. The present study investigates the movement of Bax in isolated rat neonatal cardiomyocytes subjected to simulated ischaemia (minus glucose, plus cyanide), using green fluorescent protein-tagged Bax as a means of imaging Bax movements. Simulated ischaemia induced Bax translocation from the cytosol to mitochondria, commencing within 20 min of simulated ischaemia and progressing for several hours. Under the same conditions, there was an increase in the active, phosphorylated forms of p38 MAPK (mitogen-activated protein kinase) and AMPK (AMP-activated protein kinase). The AMPK activators AICAR (5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide ribonucleoside) and metformin also stimulated Bax translocation. Inhibition of p38 MAPK with SB203580 attenuated the phosphorylation of the downstream substrates, MAPK-activated protein kinases 2 and 3, but not that of the upstream MAPK kinase 3, nor of AMPK. Under all conditions (ischaemia, AICAR and metformin), SB203580 blocked Bax translocation completely. It is concluded that Bax translocation to mitochondria is an early step in ischaemia and that it occurs in response to activation of p38 MAPK downstream of AMPK.
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PMID:Bax translocates to mitochondria of heart cells during simulated ischaemia: involvement of AMP-activated and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinases. 1846 12

Tuberous sclerosis is an autosomal-dominant disorder caused by the mutation of one of the two tumor suppressor genes: TSC1 or TSC2, encoding protein products, hamartin, and tuberin, respectively. Both proteins form intracellular complexes exerting inhibitory activity on mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) kinase. It has been demonstrated that signal transduction from tuberin to mTOR is mediated by a G protein, Ras homologue enriched in brain (Rheb). In normal cells, tuberin having GTPase-activating protein properties toward Rheb controls signals of nutrient depletion, hypoxia, or stress, not allowing activation of mTOR and subsequent protein translation and cell proliferation. However, when environmental conditions change, tuberin is phosphorylated and it forms a complex with hamartin is degraded, and downstream targets of mTOR, S6K, and eEF2K, can be activated. In this review, we summarize very recent information contributing to our knowledge of TSC2 regulation by four cellular signaling pathways: PI3K/Akt, Ras/MAPK, LKB1/AMPK, and REDD1.
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PMID:Positive and negative regulation of TSC2 activity and its effects on downstream effectors of the mTOR pathway. 1639 86

Omapatrilat (OMA), a vasopeptidase inhibitor (VPI), presently being tested in clinical trials for its antihypertensive properties, inhibits both angiotensin-converting enzyme and neutral endopeptidase, and raises tissue bradykinin levels. Recent studies from our laboratory and those of others have demonstrated that VPIs enhance muscle glucose uptake in animal models, and this effect is mediated by the bradykinin-nitric oxide pathway. The mechanism of the effect of OMA on muscle glucose uptake, however, is presently unknown. To investigate the effect of OMA on insulin signaling, soleus muscle was isolated 2 or 5 min after an i.v. bolus of insulin or saline from male Zucker fatty rats (8-10 weeks of age), following a 5-day treatment period of oral OMA (15 mg/kg per day) or drug vehicle (placebo). OMA resulted in significantly lower systolic blood pressure compared with the placebo-treated group (84.4+/- 7.52 mmHg in OMA vs 112+/-2.18 mmHg in controls, P<0.01). Immunoprecipitation and Western blot analysis of insulin receptor substrate 1 (IRS-1) revealed no changes in protein mass with OMA treatment. OMA did not enhance basal or insulin-stimulated IRS-1 tyrosine phosphorylation or its subsequent association with the p85 regulatory subunit of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase. Under basal and insulin-stimulated conditions, OMA treatment did not alter the protein mass or the phosphorylation of Akt/protein kinase B, p42/44 extracellular signal-regulated kinase or adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase, or GLUT4 protein expression. We conclude that the ability of OMA to enhance whole body and specifically muscle glucose uptake in Zucker fatty rats is not mediated by enhancing insulin or AMPK signaling. Future studies should examine whether hemodynamic effects of the drug, independent of insulin signaling, enhance glucose uptake in insulin-resistant skeletal muscle.
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PMID:Enhancement of muscle glucose uptake by the vasopeptidase inhibitor, omapatrilat, is independent of insulin signaling and the AMP kinase pathway. 1689 77

Berberine is a plant alkaloid used in traditional Chinese medicine and has been reported to have antihyperglycemic activity in NIDDM patients. However, the molecular basis for this action is yet to be elucidated. Here we investigate the effects and signaling pathways of berberine on L6 rat skeletal muscles. Our study demonstrates that berberine stimulates glucose uptake in a time- and dose-dependent manner. Intriguingly, berberine-stimulated glucose uptake does not vary as insulin concentration increases, and could not be blocked by the PI 3-kinase inhibitor wortmannin. Berberine only weakly stimulates the phosphorylation of Akt/PKB, a key molecule in the insulin signaling pathway, but strongly promotes the phosphorylation of AMPK and p38 MAPK. The effects of berberine are not a result of pro-oxidant action, but a consequence of an increased cellular AMP:ATP ratio. Moreover, berberine-stimulated glucose uptake is inhibited by the AMPK inhibitor Compound C and the p38 MAPK inhibitor SB202190. Inhibition of AMPK reduces p38 MAPK phosphorylation, suggesting that AMPK lies upstream of p38 MAPK. These results suggest that berberine circumvents insulin signaling pathways and stimulates glucose uptake through the AMP-AMPK-p38 MAPK pathway, which may account for the antihyperglycemic effects of this drug.
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PMID:Berberine-stimulated glucose uptake in L6 myotubes involves both AMPK and p38 MAPK. 1704 64

AMP-activated protein kinase influences cellular metabolism, glucose-regulated gene expression, and insulin secretion of pancreatic beta cells. Its sustained activation by culture at low glucose concentrations or in the presence of 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide riboside (AICAR) was shown to trigger apoptosis in beta cells. This study shows that both low glucose- and AICAR-induced apoptosis are associated with increased formation of mitochondrial superoxide-derived radicals and decreased mitochondrial activity. Mitochondrial dysfunction was reflected by an increased oxidized state of the mitochondrial flavins (FMN/FAD) but not of NAD(P)H. It was accompanied by suppression of glucose oxidation and glucose-induced insulin secretion, while palmitate oxidation appeared unaffected. When the cellular accumulation of superoxide-derived radicals was quenched by the ROS scavengers vitamin E, N-acetylcysteine, or the SOD-mimetic compound MnTBAP, apoptosis was significantly inhibited. Both low glucose and AICAR also elevated the expression of BH3-domain-only Bcl-2 antagonists, and induced caspase-3 activation, causing caspase-dependent truncation of Bcl-2. Overexpression of recombinant human Bcl-2 prevented caspase-3 activation, endogenous Bcl-2 processing, and apoptosis, but did not attenuate oxygen radical formation, AMPK activation, or JNK phosphorylation. We conclude that apoptosis by prolonged AMPK activation in beta cells results from enhanced production of mitochondria-derived oxygen radicals and onset of the intrinsic mitochondrial apoptosis pathway, followed by caspase activation and Bcl-2 cleavage which may amplify the death signal.
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PMID:Increased oxygen radical formation and mitochondrial dysfunction mediate beta cell apoptosis under conditions of AMP-activated protein kinase stimulation. 1715 94


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