Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts: Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound   Target Concepts: Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound

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Query: EC:2.7.12.2 (MEK)
18,161 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The B cell antigen receptor (BCR) activates Ras, a GTPase that promotes cell proliferation by activating the Raf-1/MEK/ERK signaling module and other signaling enzymes. In its active GTP-bound form, the Rap1 GTPase may act as a negative regulator of Ras-mediated signaling by sequestering Ras effectors (e.g., Raf-1) and preventing their activation. In this report, we show that BCR engagement activates Rap1 and that this is dependent on production of diacylglycerol (DAG) by phospholipase C-gamma. Activation of Rap1 by the BCR was greatly reduced in phospholipase C-gamma-deficient B cells, whereas both a synthetic DAG and phorbol dibutyrate could activate Rap1 in B cells. We had previously shown that C3G, an activator of Rap1, associates with the Crk adaptor proteins in B cells and that BCR engagement causes Crk to bind to the Cas and Cbl docking proteins. However, the DAG-dependent pathway by which the BCR activates Rap1 apparently does not involve Crk signaling complexes since phorbol dibutyrate could activate Rap1 without inducing the formation of these complexes. Thus, the BCR activates Rap1 via a novel DAG-dependent pathway.
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PMID:Activation of the Rap1 GTPase by the B cell antigen receptor. 978 33

We examined the importance of the Rho family GTPase Rac1 for cyclin D(1) promoter transcriptional activation in bovine tracheal myocytes. Overexpression of active Rac1 induced transcription from the cyclin D(1) promoter, whereas platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)-induced transcription was inhibited by a dominant-negative allele of Rac1, suggesting that Rac1 functions as an upstream activator of cyclin D(1) in this system. Rac1 forms part of the NADPH oxidase complex that generates reactive oxygen species such as H(2)O(2). PDGF stimulated a substantial increase in intracellular reactive oxygen species, as measured by the fluorescence of dichlorofluorescein-loaded cells, and this was blocked by the glutathione peroxidase mimetic ebselen. Pretreatment with ebselen, catalase, and the flavoprotein inhibitor diphenylene iodonium each attenuated PDGF- and Rac1-mediated cyclin D(1) promoter activation, while having no effect on the induction of cyclin D(1) by mitogen-activated protein kinase/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) kinase-1 (MEK1), the upstream activator of ERKs. Antioxidant treatment also inhibited PDGF-induced cyclin D(1) protein expression and DNA synthesis. Overexpression of an N-terminal fragment of p67(phox), a component of NADPH oxidase which interacts with Rac1, attenuated PDGF-induced cyclin D(1) promoter activity, whereas overexpression of the wild-type p67 did not. Finally, Rac1 was neither required nor sufficient for ERK activation. Taken together, these data suggest a model by which two distinct signaling pathways, the ERK and Rac1 pathways, positively regulate cyclin D(1) and smooth muscle growth.
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PMID:Characterization of a Rac1 signaling pathway to cyclin D(1) expression in airway smooth muscle cells. 1041 34

Hypoxia is a common environmental stress that regulates gene expression and cell function. A number of hypoxia-regulated transcription factors have been identified and have been shown to play critical roles in mediating cellular responses to hypoxia. One of these is the endothelial PAS-domain protein 1 (EPAS1/HIF2-alpha/HLF/HRF). This protein is 48% homologous to hypoxia-inducible factor 1-alpha (HIF1-alpha). To date, virtually nothing is known about the signaling pathways that lead to either EPAS1 or HIF1-alpha activation. Here we show that EPAS1 is phosphorylated when PC12 cells are exposed to hypoxia and that p42/p44 MAPK is a critical mediator of EPAS1 activation. Pretreatment of PC12 cells with the MEK inhibitor, PD98059, completely blocked hypoxia-induced trans-activation of a hypoxia response element (HRE) reporter gene by transfected EPAS1. Likewise, expression of a constitutively active MEK1 mimicked the effects of hypoxia on HRE reporter gene expression. However, pretreatment with PD98059 had no effect on EPAS1 phosphorylation during hypoxia, suggesting that MAPK targets other proteins that are critical for the trans-activation of EPAS1. We further show that hypoxia-induced trans-activation of EPAS1 is independent of Ras. Finally, pretreatment with calmodulin antagonists nearly completely blocked both the hypoxia-induced phosphorylation of MAPK and the EPAS1 trans-activation of HRE-Luc. These results demonstrate that the MAPK pathway is a critical mediator of EPAS1 activation and that activation of MAPK and EPAS1 occurs through a calmodulin-sensitive pathway and not through the GTPase, Ras. These results are the first to identify a specific signaling pathway involved in EPAS1 activation.
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PMID:EPAS1 trans-activation during hypoxia requires p42/p44 MAPK. 1055 62

Ras-induced cell transformation is mediated through distinct downstream signaling pathways, including Raf, Ral-GEFs-, and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI 3-kinase)-dependent pathways. In some cell types, strong activation of the Ras-Raf-MEK-extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) cascade leads to cell cycle arrest rather than cell division. We previously reported that constitutive activation of this pathway induces sustained proliferation of primary cultures of postmitotic chicken neuroretina (NR) cells. We used this model system to investigate the respective contributions of Ras downstream signaling pathways in Ras-induced cell proliferation. Three RasV12 mutants (S35, G37, and C40) which differ by their ability to bind to Ras effectors (Raf, Ral-GEFs, and the p110 subunit of PI 3-kinase, respectively) were able to induce sustained NR cell proliferation, although none of these mutants was reported to transform NIH 3T3 cells. Furthermore, they all repressed the promoter of QR1, a neuroretina growth arrest-specific gene. Overexpression of B-Raf or activated versions of Ras effectors Rlf-CAAX and p110-CAAX also induced NR cell division. The mitogenic effect of the RasC40-PI 3-kinase pathway appears to involve Rac and RhoA GTPases but not the antiapoptotic Akt (protein kinase B) signaling. Division induced by RasG37-Rlf appears to be independent of Ral GTPase activation and presumably requires an unidentified mechanism. Activation of either Ras downstream pathway resulted in ERK activation, and coexpression of a dominant negative MEK mutant or mKsr-1 kinase domain strongly inhibited proliferation induced by the three Ras mutants or by their effectors. Similar effects were observed with dominant negative mutants of Rac and Rho. Thus, both the Raf-MEK-ERK and Rac-Rho pathways are absolutely required for Ras-induced NR cell division. Activation of these two pathways by the three distinct Ras downstream effectors possibly relies on an autocrine or paracrine loop, implicating endogenous Ras, since the mitogenic effect of each Ras effector mutant was inhibited by RasN17.
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PMID:Induction of postmitotic neuroretina cell proliferation by distinct Ras downstream signaling pathways. 1098 23

We used a herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) mutant with a deletion in the RR1 (ICP10) PK domain (ICP10DeltaPK) and an MEK inhibitor (PD98059) to examine the role of ICP10 PK in virus growth. In HSV-2-infected cells, ICP10 PK binds and phosphorylates the GTPase activating protein Ras-GAP. In vitro binding and peptide competition assays indicated that Ras-GAP N-SH2 and PH domains, respectively, bind ICP10 at phosphothreonines 117 and 141 and a WD40-like motif at positions 160 to 173. Binding and phosphorylation did not occur in cells infected with ICP10DeltaPK. GTPase activity was significantly lower in HSV-2- than in ICP10DeltaPK-infected cells. Conversely, the levels of activated Ras and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), and the expression and stabilization of the transcription factor c-Fos were significantly increased in cells infected with HSV-2 or a revertant virus [HSV-2(R)] but not with ICP10DeltaPK. PD98059 inhibited MAPK activation and induction-stabilization of c-Fos. Expression from the ICP10 promoter was increased in cells infected with HSV-2 but not with ICP10DeltaPK, and increased expression was ablated by PD98059. ICP10 DNA formed a complex with nuclear extracts from HSV-2-infected cells which was supershifted by c-Fos antibody and was not seen with extracts from ICP10DeltaPK-infected cells. Complex formation was abrogated by PD98059. Onset of HSV-2 replication was significantly delayed by PD98059 (14 h versus 2 h in untreated cells), a delay similar to that seen for ICP10DeltaPK. The data indicate that Ras-GAP phosphorylation by ICP10 PK is involved in the activation of the Ras/MEK/MAPK mitogenic pathway and c-Fos induction and stabilization. This results in increased ICP10 expression and the timely onset of HSV-2 growth.
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PMID:Ras-GAP binding and phosphorylation by herpes simplex virus type 2 RR1 PK (ICP10) and activation of the Ras/MEK/MAPK mitogenic pathway are required for timely onset of virus growth. 1104 86

Transmigration of monocytes to the subendothelial space is the initial step of atherosclerotic plaque formation and inflammation. Integrin activation and chemotaxis are two important functions involved in monocyte transmigration. To delineate the signaling cascades leading to integrin activation and chemotaxis by monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), we have investigated the roles of MAPK and Rho GTPases in THP-1 cells, a monocytic cell line. MCP-1 stimulated beta1 integrin-dependent, but not beta2 integrin-dependent cell adhesion in a time-dependent manner. MCP-1-mediated cell adhesion was inhibited by a MEK inhibitor but not by a p38-MAPK inhibitor. In contrast, MCP-1-mediated chemotaxis was inhibited by the p38-MAPK inhibitor but not by the MEK inhibitor. The inhibitor of Rho GTPase, C3 exoenzyme, and a Rho kinase inhibitor abrogated MCP-1-dependent chemotaxis but not integrin-dependent cell adhesion. Further, C3 exoenzyme and the Rho kinase inhibitor blocked MCP-1-dependent p38-MAPK activation. These data indicate that ERK is responsible for integrin activation, that p38-MAPK and Rho are responsible for chemotaxis mediated by MCP-1, and that Rho and the Rho kinase are upstream of p38-MAPK in MCP-1-mediated signaling. This study demonstrates that two distinct MAPKs regulate two dependent signaling cascades leading to integrin activation and chemotaxis induced by MCP-1 in THP-1 cells.
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PMID:Distinct signaling pathways for MCP-1-dependent integrin activation and chemotaxis. 1127 64

In 1990, more than 10 years after the discovery that the low molecular weight GTPase Ras is a major contributor to human cancer, farnesylation, a lipid posttranslational modification required for the cancer-causing activity of Ras, emerged as a major target for the development of novel anticancer agents. However, it took only 5 years from 1993, when the first farnesyltransferase inhibitors (FTIs) were reported, to 1998 when results from the first phase I clinical trials were described. This rapid progress was due to the demonstration of outstanding antitumor activity and lack of toxicity of FTIs in preclinical models. Although, many FTIs are currently in phase H and at least one is in phase III clinical trial, the mechanism of FTI antitumor activity is not known. In this review a brief summary of the development of FTIs as antitumor agents will be given. The focus of the review will be on important mechanistic and bench-to-bedside translational issues. Among the issues that will be addressed are: evidence for and against inhibition of the prenylation of Ras and RhoB proteins in the mechanism of action of FTIs; implications of the alternative prenylation of K-Ras by geranylgeranyl-transferase I (when FTase is inhibited) in cancer therapy; GGTase I inhibitors (GGTIs) as antitumor agents; effects of FTIs and GGTIs on cell cycle machinery and progression and potential mechanisms by which FTIs and GGTIs induce apoptosis in human cancer cells. A thorough discussion about bench-to-bedside issues relating to hypothesis-driven clinical trials with proof-of-principle in man will also be included. This section will cover issues relating to whether the biochemical target (FTase) is inhibited and the level of inhibition of FTase required for clinical response; are signaling pathways such as H-Ras/PI3K/Akt and/or K-Ras/Raf/MEK/Erk relevant biological readouts?; is Ras (particularly N-Ras and H-Ras) mutation status a good predictor of clinical response?; in phase I trials should effective biological dose, not maximally tolerated dose, be used to determine phase II dose?; and finally, in phase II/III trials what are the most appropriate clinical end points for anti-signaling molecules such as FTIs? Parts of this topic have been recently reviewed (Sebti and Hamilton, 2000c).
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PMID:Farnesyltransferase and geranylgeranyltransferase I inhibitors and cancer therapy: lessons from mechanism and bench-to-bedside translational studies. 1142 43

Ras plays an essential role in activation of Raf kinase which is directly responsible for activation of the MEK-ERK kinase pathway. A direct protein-protein interaction between Ras and the N-terminal regulatory domain of Raf is critical for Raf activation. However, association with Ras is not sufficient to activate Raf in vitro, indicating that Ras must activate some other biochemical events leading to activation of Raf. We have observed that RasV12Y32F and RasV12T35S mutants fail to activate Raf, yet retain the ability to interact with Raf. In this report, we showed that RasV12Y32F and RasV12T35S can cooperate with members of the Rho family GTPases to activate Raf while alone the Rho family GTPase is not effective in Raf activation. A dominant negative mutant of Rac or RhoA can block Raf activation by Ras. The effect of Rac or Cdc42 can be substituted by the Pak kinase, which is a direct downstream target of Rac/Cdc42. Furthermore, expression of a kinase inactive mutant of Pak or the N-terminal inhibitory domain of Pak1 can block the effect of Rac or Cdc42. In contrast, Pak appears to play no direct role in relaying the signal from RhoA to Raf, indicating that RhoA utilizes a different mechanism than Rac/Cdc42. Membrane-associated but not cytoplasmic Raf can be activated by Rac or RhoA. Our data support a model by which the Rho family small GTPases play an important role to mediate the activation of Raf by Ras. Ras, at least, has two distinct functions in Raf activation, recruitment of Raf to the plasma membrane by direct binding and stimulation of Raf activating kinases via the Rho family GTPases.
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PMID:Function of the Rho family GTPases in Ras-stimulated Raf activation. 1145 31

Galpha13 mediates the ability of the morphogen retinoic acid to promote primitive endoderm formation from mouse P19 embryonal carcinoma stem cells, a process that includes the obligate activation of Jun N-terminal kinase. Expression of the constitutively activated (Q226L) GTPase-deficient form of Galpha13 mimics retinoic acid and was used to investigate the signaling upstream of primitive endoderm formation. Jun N-terminal kinase 1 activity, MEK1,2, MKK4, and MEKK1 were constitutively activated in clones stably transfected to express Q226L Galpha13. Dominant negative forms of MEKK1 and MEKK4 were expressed stably in the clones harboring Q226L Galpha13. Expression of dominant negative versions of either MEKK1 or MEKK4 effectively blocks both the activation of Jun N-terminal kinase as well as the formation of primitive endoderm. Depletion of MEKK1, -2, or -4 by antisense oligodeoxynucleotides suppressed signaling from Q226L Galpha13 to JNK1 and primitive endoderm formation. We demonstrate that the signal linkage map from Galpha13 activation to primitive endoderm formation in these stem cells requires activation at three levels of the mitogen-activated protein kinase cascade: MEKK1, -2, or -4 for MAP kinase kinase kinase; MKK4 and/or MEK1 for MAP kinase kinase; and JNK1 for MAP kinase.
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PMID:Expression of Galpha 13 (Q226L) induces P19 stem cells to primitive endoderm via MEKK1, 2, or 4. 1170 Mar 6

Tiam1 and Ras-GRF1 are guanine nucleotide exchange factors (GEFs) that activate the Rac GTPase. The two GEFs have similar N-terminal regions containing pleckstrin homology domains followed by coiled-coils and additional sequences that function together to allow regulated GEF activity. Here we show that this N-terminal region of both proteins binds to the scaffold protein IB2/JIP2. IB2/JIP2 is a scaffold for the p38 mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase cascade because it binds to the Rac target MLK3, the MAP kinase kinase MKK3, and the p38 MAP kinase. Expression of IB2/JIP2 in cells potentiates the ability of Tiam1 or Ras-GRF1 to activate the p38 MAP kinase cascade but not the Jnk MAP kinase cascade. In addition, Tiam1 or Ras-GRF1 binding to IB2/JIP2 increases the association of the components of the p38 MAP kinase signaling cassette with IB2/JIP2 in cells and activates scaffold-associated p38. These findings imply that Tiam1 and Ras-GRF1 can contribute to Rac signaling specificity by their ability to form a complex with a scaffold that binds components of one of the many known Rac effector pathways.
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PMID:Interaction of Rac exchange factors Tiam1 and Ras-GRF1 with a scaffold for the p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase cascade. 1202 21


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