Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: EC:6.3.2.19 (ubiquitin-protein ligase)
 799 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Degradation of the mammalian cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) inhibitor p27 is required for the cellular transition from quiescence to the proliferative state. The ubiquitination and subsequent degradation of p27 depend on its phosphorylation by cyclin-CDK complexes. However, the ubiquitin-protein ligase necessary for p27 ubiquitination has not been identified. Here we show that the F-box protein SKP2 specifically recognizes p27 in a phosphorylation-dependent manner that is characteristic of an F-box-protein-substrate interaction. Furthermore, both in vivo and in vitro, SKP2 is a rate-limiting component of the machinery that ubiquitinates and degrades phosphorylated p27. Thus, p27 degradation is subject to dual control by the accumulation of both SKP2 and cyclins following mitogenic stimulation.
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PMID:SKP2 is required for ubiquitin-mediated degradation of the CDK inhibitor p27. 1055 16

Skp2 is a member of the F-box family of substrate-recognition subunits of SCF ubiquitin-protein ligase complexes that has been implicated in the ubiquitin-mediated degradation of several key regulators of mammalian G(1) progression, including the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor p27, a dosage-dependent tumor suppressor protein. In this study, we examined Skp2 and p27 protein expression by immunohistochemistry in normal oral epithelium and in different stages of malignant oral cancer progression, including dysplasia and oral squamous cell carcinoma. We found that increased levels of Skp2 protein are associated with reduced p27 in a subset of oral epithelial dysplasias and carcinomas compared with normal epithelial controls. Tumors with high Skp2 (>20% positive cells) expression invariably showed reduced or absent p27 and tumors with high p27 (>20% positive cells) expression rarely showed Skp2 positivity. Increased Skp2 protein levels were not always correlated with increased cell proliferation (assayed by Ki-67 staining), suggesting that alterations of Skp2 may contribute to the malignant phenotype without affecting proliferation. Skp2 protein overexpression may lead to accelerated p27 proteolysis and contribute to malignant progression from dysplasia to oral epithelial carcinoma. Moreover, we also demonstrate that Skp2 has oncogenic potential by showing that Skp2 cooperates with H-Ras(G12V) to malignantly transform primary rodent fibroblasts as scored by colony formation in soft agar and tumor formation in nude mice. The observations that Skp2 can mediate transformation and is up-regulated during oral epithelial carcinogenesis support a role for Skp2 as a protooncogene in human tumors.
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PMID:Skp2 is oncogenic and overexpressed in human cancers. 1130 91

Reduced expression level of p27, a cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor, is associated with high aggressiveness and poor prognosis of various malignant tumors, including gastric carcinoma. S-phase kinase-associated protein 2 (Skp2), a member of the F-box family of substrate-recognition subunits of Skp1-Cullin-F-box ubiquitin-protein ligase complexes, is necessary for p27 ubiquitination and degradation. In the present study, we examined the clinical and biological significance of Skp2 expression in human gastric carcinoma and the relationship between the expression of Skp2 and p27. Northern blot analysis showed that Skp2 mRNA was overexpressed in carcinoma tissues (P < 0.05), and the high Skp2 expression group showed significantly poorer prognosis in 98 patients with gastric carcinoma (P < 0.05). Immunohistochemical analysis showed that Skp2 protein was expressed predominantly in carcinoma cells. We also found an inverse correlation between the expression of Skp2 mRNA and p27 protein in vivo (P < 0.01). To analyze the biological behavior of Skp2, we established stably Skp2-transfected gastric carcinoma cell lines. Western blot analysis showed that Skp2-transfected cells expressed lower levels of p27 protein than the control cells. Skp2-transfected cells showed significantly higher levels of growth rate (P < 0.05), percentage of bromodeoxyuridine-positive cells after serum starvation (P < 0.01), resistance to apoptosis induction by actinomycin D treatment (P < 0.05), and invasion potential (P < 0.01) than the control cells. These findings indicate that Skp2 expression can modulate the malignant phenotype of gastric carcinoma, possibly via p27 proteolysis. Skp2 can play an important role in gastric carcinoma progression and would be a novel target for the treatment of gastric carcinoma as well as a strong prognostic marker.
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PMID:Clinical and biological significance of S-phase kinase-associated protein 2 (Skp2) gene expression in gastric carcinoma: modulation of malignant phenotype by Skp2 overexpression, possibly via p27 proteolysis. 1209 95

F-Box protein p45(SKP2) is the substrate-specific receptor of ubiquitin-protein ligase SCF/p45(SKP2) and is involved in the degradation of p27(Kip1) through the ubiquitin/proteasome pathway. In addition, p45(SKP2) facilitates proteolysis of other molecules related to the cell cycle, is frequently over-expressed in transformed cells, and induces S phase in quiescent cells. The aim of this study was to determine whether p45(SKP2) expression is altered in aggressive lesions of Kaposi's sarcoma and its relation to p27(KIP1)down-regulation. We performed immunohistochemistry using antibodies directed to p45(SKP2), p27(KIP1), and Ki67 on paraffin blocks corresponding to 47 cases of Kaposi's sarcoma (8 macules, 10 plaques, 12 tumors, and 15 extracutaneous lesions). p45(SKP2) nuclear over-expression was present in all Kaposi's sarcoma stages, being significantly increased in skin tumors (mean +/- 95% confidence interval: 39.2 +/- 18.8) and extracutaneous lesions (25.8 +/- 17.3) as compared with macules (18.9 +/- 8.2) and plaques (29.2 +/- 12.0; P =.0199). On the other hand, Kaposi's sarcoma progression was associated with a decrease in p27(KIP1) expression and Ki67 immunoreactivity was independent of disease stage. No statistically significant differences were found in regard to patients' sex and human immunodeficiency virus status and regression analysis failed to show a correlation among p45(SKP2), p27(KIP1) and Ki67 immunostaining scores. These findings suggest that p45(SKP2) is involved in Kaposi's sarcoma progression, not only by promoting the degradation of p27(KIP1) but also through other mechanisms still unknown.
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PMID:Over-expression of p45(SKP2) in Kaposi's sarcoma correlates with higher tumor stage and extracutaneous involvement but is not directly related to p27(KIP1) down-regulation. 1242 3

p53-Induced ring-H2 protein (Pirh2), a recently identified ubiquitin-protein ligase, interacts with p27(Kip1) to promote ubiquitination of p27(Kip1) independently of p53. High Pirh2 and low p27(Kip1) immunoreactivity are associated with a poor prognosis in several cancers, including resistant phenotypes. In the present study, we investigated the role of Pirh2 and p27(Kip1) in human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) progression. Immunohistochemical analysis was performed on formalin-fixed paraffin sections of 87 specimens. Statistical analysis showed that expression of Pirh2 was negatively related to p27(Kip1) expression (r = 0.787; P < .05), and Pirh2 expression correlated significantly with histologic grade (P < .001), venous invasion (P = .004), tumor size (P = .024), and the presence of multiple tumor-bearing lymph nodes (P = .017), whereas p27(Kip1) expression correlated significantly with histologic grade (P < .001), venous invasion (P = .048), and cirrhosis (P = .028). By Kaplan-Meier analysis, the survival curves of low versus high expressers of Pirh2 and p27(Kip1) showed significant separation (P < .01). Molecular interaction could be demonstrated between Pirh2 and p27(Kip1) in three HCC cell lines. In vitro, following release of two HCC cell lines from serum starvation, the expression of Pirh2 was upregulated, whereas p27(Kip1) was downregulated. Our results suggest that Pirh2 mediates the degradation of p27(Kip1) and participates in cell proliferation in human HCC. These findings provide a rational framework for further development of Pirh2 inhibitors as a novel class of anti-tumor agents.
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PMID:Expression of Pirh2, a p27(Kip1) ubiquitin ligase, in hepatocellular carcinoma: correlation with p27(Kip1) and cell proliferation. 2123 67

Pirh2, a p53-induced ubiquitin-protein ligase, has been reported to promote ubiquitin-dependent degradation of p27(kip1), which plays an essential role in mammalian cell cycle regulation and neurogenesis in the developing central nervous system (CNS). However, their distributions and functions in the nervous system lesion and repair remain unclear. In this study, we observed that the up-regulated expression of Pirh2 was concomitant with decreased p27(kip1) level after traumatic brain injury by Western blot and immunohistochemistry. Immunofluorescence double-labeling revealed that Pirh2 was mainly co-expressed with GFAP and CD11b. Meanwhile, we also examined the expression profiles of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) whose changes were correlated with the expression of Pirh2. In addition, Pirh2 colocalized with p27(kip1) and PCNA. Immunoprecipitation further showed that they interacted with each other in the pathophysiology process. In summary, our data indicated Pirh2 might be a negative regulator of p27(kip1) and associated with glial proliferation.
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PMID:Changes in Pirh2 and p27kip1 expression following traumatic brain injury in adult rats. 2172 64

Protein ubiquitination plays an important role in the regulation of almost every aspect of eukaryotic cellular function; therefore, its destabilization is often observed in most human diseases and cancers. Consequently, developing inhibitors of the ubiquitination system for the treatment of cancer has been a recent area of interest. Currently, only a few classes of compounds have been discovered to inhibit the ubiquitin-activating enzyme (E1) and only one class is relatively selective in E1 inhibition in cells. We now report that Largazole and its ester and ketone analogs selectively inhibit ubiquitin conjugation to p27(Kip1) and TRF1 in vitro. The inhibitory activity of these small molecules on ubiquitin conjugation has been traced to their inhibition of the ubiquitin E1 enzyme. To further dissect the mechanism of E1 inhibition, we analyzed the effects of these inhibitors on each of the two steps of E1 activation. We show that Largazole and its derivatives specifically inhibit the adenylation step of the E1 reaction while having no effect on thioester bond formation between ubiquitin and E1. E1 inhibition appears to be specific to human E1 as Largazole ketone fails to inhibit the activation of Uba1p, a homolog of E1 in Schizosaccharomyces pombe. Moreover, Largazole analogs do not significantly inhibit SUMO E1. Thus, Largazole and select analogs are a novel class of ubiquitin E1 inhibitors and valuable tools for studying ubiquitination in vitro. This class of compounds could be further developed and potentially be a useful tool in cells.
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PMID:Largazole and its derivatives selectively inhibit ubiquitin activating enzyme (e1). 2227 28