Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UNIPROT:P05412 (c-Jun)
 11,453 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Ca(2+)-sensitive tyrosine kinase Pyk2 was shown to be involved in angiotensin (Ang) II-mediated activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) via transactivation of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGF-R). In this study, we tested the involvement of Pyk2 and EGF-R in Ang II-induced activation of JNK and c-Jun in cardiac fibroblasts. Ang II markedly stimulated JNK activities, which were abolished by genistein and intracellular Ca(2+) chelators but partially by protein kinase C depletion. Inhibition of EGF-R did not affect Pyk2 and JNK activation by Ang II. Stable transfection with a dominant negative (DN) mutant for Pyk2 (PKM) completely blocked JNK activation by Ang II. DN mutants of Rac1 (DN-Rac1) and MEK kinase (DN-MEKK1) also abolished it, whereas those of Cdc42, RhoA, and Ha-Ras had no effect. Induction of c-Jun gene transcription by Ang II was abolished in PKM, DN-Rac1, and DN-MEKK1, in which Ang II-induced binding of ATF2/c-Jun heterodimer to the activator protein-1 sequence at -190 played a key role. These results suggest that 1) in cardiac fibroblasts activation of JNK and c-Jun by Ang II is initiated by Pyk2-dependent signalings but not by downstream signals of EGF-R or Ras, 2) Rac1 but not Cdc42 is required for JNK activation by Ang II upstream of MEKK1, and 3) ATF-2/c-Jun binding to the activator protein-1 sequence at -190 plays a key role for induction of c-Jun gene by Ang II.
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PMID:Angiotensin II initiates tyrosine kinase Pyk2-dependent signalings leading to activation of Rac1-mediated c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase. 1085 8

Rho proteins, members of the Ras superfamily of GTPases, are critical elements in signal transduction pathways governing cell proliferation and cell death. Different members of the family of human Rho GTPases, including RhoA, RhoC, and Rac1, participate in the regulation of apoptosis in response to cytokines and serum deprivation in different cell systems. Here, we have characterized the mechanism of apoptosis induced by Rac1 in NIH 3T3 cells. It requires protein synthesis and caspase-3 activity, but it is independent of the release of cytochrome c from mitochondria. Moreover, an increase in mitochondria membrane potential and the production of reactive oxygen species was observed. Rac1-induced apoptosis was related to the simultaneous increase in ceramide production and synthesis of FasL. Generation of FasL may be mediated by transcriptional regulation involving both c-Jun amino terminal kinase as well as nuclear factor-kappa B-dependent signals. None of these signals, ceramides or FasL, was sufficient to induce apoptosis in the parental cell line, NIH 3T3 cells. However, any of them was sufficient to induce apoptosis in the Rac1-expressing cells. Finally, inhibition of FasL signaling drastically reduced apoptosis by Rac1. Thus, Rac1 seems to induce apoptosis by a complex mechanism involving the generation of ceramides and the de novo synthesis of FasL. These results suggest that apoptosis mediated by Rac1 results from a signaling mechanism that involves biochemical and transcriptional events under control of Rac1.
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PMID:Apoptosis induced by Rac GTPase correlates with induction of FasL and ceramides production. 1110 28

The position of the point mutation in the c-K-ras gene appears associated with different degrees of aggressiveness in human colorectal tumors. In addition, colon tumors carrying K-ras codon 12 mutations associate with lower levels of apoptosis than tumors lacking this mutation. To test the hypothesis of a distinct transforming capacity of different K-ras forms in an in vitro system, we generated stable transfectants of NIH3T3 cells expressing a plasmid containing K-ras mutated at codon 12 (K12) or at codon 13 (K13), or overexpressing the K-ras proto-oncogene (Kwt-oe). We evaluated changes in morphology, proliferative capacity, contact inhibition, and predisposition to apoptosis and anchorage-independent growth in K12, K13, and Kwt-oe transformants. In addition, we studied alterations in expression and/or activation of proteins that participate in signal transduction downstream of Ras or are involved in the regulation of apoptosis and cell-cell (E-cadherin and beta-catenin) and cell-substrate (focal adhesion kinase) interactions. We observed that K13 or Kwt-oe transformants died synchronically 24-48 h after reaching confluency. Their death was apoptotic. In contrast, K12 grew, forming bigger colonies with higher cell densities; and before reaching confluency, spontaneously formed spheroids and showed no sign of apoptosis. The enhanced resistance to apoptosis, loss of contact inhibition, and predisposition to anchorage-independent growth in the K12 transformants were associated with higher AKT/protein kinase B activation, bcl-2, E-cadherin, beta-catenin, and focal adhesion kinase overexpression, and RhoA underexpression, whereas the increased sensitivity of K13 or Kwt-oe transformants to apoptosis was associated with increased activation of the c-Jun-NH2-terminal kinase 1 pathway. All transformants showed a similar overactivation of mitogen-activated protein kinases and levels of bax expression similar to the endogenous level. Therefore, in our in vitro model, the localization of the mutation in the K-ras gene predisposes to a different level of aggressiveness in the transforming phenotype. K12 may increase aggressiveness not by altering proliferative pathways, but by the differential regulation of K-Ras downstream pathways that lead to inhibition of apoptosis, enhanced loss of contact inhibition, and increased predisposition to anchorage-independent growth. These results offer a molecular explanation for the increased aggressiveness of the tumors with K-ras codon 12 mutations observed in the clinical setting.
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PMID:K-ras codon 12 mutation induces higher level of resistance to apoptosis and predisposition to anchorage-independent growth than codon 13 mutation or proto-oncogene overexpression. 1111 62

The putative tumor metastasis suppressor nm23H1 was originally identified in murine melanomas by subtraction cloning. It displays nucleoside diphosphate kinase activity and regulates cellular events, including growth and development. Recently nm23H1 has been reported to also act as a GTPase-activating protein of the Ras-related GTPase Rad. We attempted to determine whether nm23H1 also regulates Rho-family GTPases. Although we were unable to detect a direct association between nm23H1 and Rho-family GTPases, nm23H1 was shown to be associated with a Rac1-specific nucleotide exchange factor, Tiam1, by interaction with its amino-terminal region in extracts from the cells expressing exogenous Tiam1 and from native tissue. Overexpression of nm23H1 inhibited the Tiam1-induced production of GTP-bound Rac1 and activation of c-Jun kinase. On the other hand, forced overexpression of the wild type, but not the kinase-inactivated mutant of nm23H1, converted the GDP-bound forms of Rac1, Cdc42, and RhoA to their GTP-bound forms in vitro by its nucleoside diphosphate kinase activity, but nm23H1 alone apparently did not produce the GTP-bound form of these GTPases in vivo. These results suggest that nm23H1 negatively regulates Tiam1 and inhibits Rac1 activation in vivo. Moreover, adhesion-stimulated membrane ruffles of Rat1 fibroblasts were reduced by overexpression of nm23H1. Based on these observations, we concluded that we had identified a function of nm23H1 as a regulator of Rac1 and that it may be related to the effect of nm23H1 as a tumor metastasis suppressor.
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PMID:Tumor metastasis suppressor nm23H1 regulates Rac1 GTPase by interaction with Tiam1. 1127 57

The Rho family of Ras-related proteins, which includes Rac1, RhoA, and Cdc42, is distinguished from other members of the Ras superfamily of small GTPases in that its members possess additional sequences positioned between beta-strand 5 and alpha-helix 4, designated the insert region. Previous studies have established the importance of an intact insert region for the transforming, but not actin cytoskeletal reorganization, activities of Cdc42 and RhoA. Similarly, the insert region was determined to be essential for Rac1-mediated mitogenesis. Additionally, an intact insert region was also determined to be required for the antiapoptotic activity of Rac1 as well as for Rac1 activation of reactive oxygen species and the NF-kappaB transcription factor. However, it has not been determined whether the insert region is important for Rac1-mediated growth transformation. In this study, we assessed the requirement for the insert region in Rac1 transformation and signaling in NIH 3T3 cells. Unexpectedly, we found that a mutant of constitutively activated Rac1 that lacked the insert region retained potent transforming activity. The insert region of Rac1 was dispensable for Rac1 stimulation of transcription from the cyclin D1 promoter and for activation of the c-Jun, NF-kappaB, and E2F-1 transcription factors but was essential for Rac1 induction of serum response factor activity. While an intact insert region was dispensable for inducing reactive oxygen species production in vivo, it was required for Rac1 induction of lamellipodia. When taken together, these results show that the insert region of Rac1 serves roles in regulating actin organization and cell growth that are distinct from those of the analogous regions of Cdc42 and RhoA and support its involvement in regulating specific downstream effector interactions.
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PMID:The insert region of Rac1 is essential for membrane ruffling but not cellular transformation. 1128 63

Leukemia-associated Rho guanine nucleotide exchange factor (LARG) was originally identified as a fusion partner with mixed-lineage leukemia in a patient with acute myeloid leukemia. LARG possesses a tandem Dbl homology and pleckstrin homology domain structure and, consequently, may function as an activator of Rho GTPases. In this study, we demonstrate that LARG is a functional Dbl protein. Expression of LARG in cells caused activation of the serum response factor, a known downstream target of Rho-mediated signaling pathways. Transient overexpression of LARG did not activate the extracellular signal-regulated kinase or c-Jun NH(2)-terminal kinase mitogen-activated protein kinase cascade, suggesting LARG is not an activator of Ras, Rac, or Cdc42. We performed in vitro exchange assays where the isolated Dbl homology (DH) or DH/pleckstrin homology domains of LARG functioned as a strong activator of RhoA, but exhibited no activity toward Rac1 or Cdc42. We found that LARG could complex with RhoA, but not Rac or Cdc42, in vitro, and that expression of LARG caused an increase in the levels of the activated GTP-bound form of RhoA, but not Rac1 or Cdc42, in vivo. Thus, we conclude that LARG is a RhoA-specific guanine nucleotide exchange factor. Finally, like activated RhoA, we determined that LARG cooperated with activated Raf-1 to transform NIH3T3 cells. These data demonstrate that LARG is the first functional Dbl protein mutated in cancer and indicate LARG-mediated activation of RhoA may play a role in the development of human leukemias.
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PMID:Leukemia-associated Rho guanine nucleotide exchange factor, a Dbl family protein found mutated in leukemia, causes transformation by activation of RhoA. 1137 93

Tumors of glial origin such as glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) comprise the majority of human brain tumors. Patients with GBM have a very poor survival rate, with an average life expectancy of <1 year. We asked whether we could identify a survival pathway in high-grade glioma and oligodendroglioma cells that when suppressed, would induce apoptosis of these tumor cells but not of normal human adult astrocytes. To identify these pathways, we selectively suppressed the activity of a number of proteins (Ras, Rac1, Akt1, RhoA, c-jun, and MEK1/2) hypothesized to play roles in cell survival. We found that suppression of Rac1, a small GTP-binding protein, inhibited survival and produced apoptosis in three human glioma cell lines (U87, U343, and U373). Serum induced the activity of Rac1 and the activity or phosphorylation state of p21-activated kinase 1 and c-Jun NH(2)-terminal kinase (JNK), two intracellular targets of Rac1. Suppression of Rac1 also induced apoptosis in 19 of 21 short-term cultures of human primary cells from grades II and III oligodendroglioma and grade IV glioblastoma that varied in p53, epidermal growth factor receptor, epidermal growth factor receptor vIII, MDM2, and p16/p19 mutational or amplification status. In contrast, inhibition of Rac1 activity did not induce apoptosis of normal primary human adult astrocytes. In both established glioma cell lines and primary glioma cells, apoptosis induced by the inhibition of Rac was partially rescued by activated mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase 1, an activator of JNK, suggesting that JNK functions downstream of Rac1 in glioma cells. These results indicate that Rac1 regulates a major survival pathway in most glioma cells, and that suppression of Rac1 activity stimulates the death of virtually all glioma cells, regardless of their mutational status. Agents that suppress Rac1 activity may therefore be useful therapeutic treatments for malignant gliomas.
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PMID:Suppression of Rac activity induces apoptosis of human glioma cells but not normal human astrocytes. 1192 35

The hallmark of tumor metastasis is the dissemination of cells from the primary growth site to distant organs. Autocrine motility factor (AMF), a tumor-associated C-X-X-C cytokine, the ligand for a unique 78 kDa seven transmembrane receptor, is a potent simulator of cell motility, a process that is a prerequisite for tumor progression and metastasis. Because little is known about AMF-dependent signaling, we sought to study whether AMF signaling involves family members of the Rho-like GTPases. AMF stimulation of human melanoma cells resulted in stress-fiber formation, concomitant with up-regulation and activation of both RhoA and Rac1 expression with no apparent changes in the expression level or activation state of Cdc42. Treatment of the cells with C3 exoenzyme before AMF stimulation inhibited both the formation of stress-fiber-like structures and the activation of RhoA. In addition, both c-Jun NH(2)-terminal kinase 1 and c-Jun NH(2)-terminal kinase 2 were simultaneously activated by AMF, supporting the notion that they are involved in the signaling pathway of RhoA. We thus conclude that AMF signaling shares a similar pathway to previously established paracrine factors signaling involving cytoskeletal rearrangement and morphological alterations mediated by the small RhoA-like GTPases.
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PMID:Activation of small GTPase Rho is required for autocrine motility factor signaling. 1215 59

The murine JNK-interacting protein 3 (JIP3) protein (also known as JSAP1) is expressed exclusively in neurons and has been identified as a scaffold protein for the c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase (JNK) signaling pathway and as an adapter protein for cargo transport by the microtubule motor protein kinesin. To investigate the physiological function of JIP3, we examined the effect of Jip3 gene disruption in mice. The Jip3-/- mice were unable to breathe and died shortly after birth. Microscopic analysis demonstrated that Jip3 gene disruption causes severe defects in the morphogenesis of the telencephalon. Jip3-/- mice lack the telencephalic commissure, a major connection between the left and right hemispheres of the brain. The central nervous system abnormalities of Jip3-/- mice may be accounted for in part by a reduction in signal transduction by RhoA and its effector ROCK.
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PMID:Morphogenesis of the telencephalic commissure requires scaffold protein JNK-interacting protein 3 (JIP3). 1289 43

MEKK1 is a mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase kinase (MAP3K) that can regulate the c-Jun amino-terminal kinase (JNK) MAP kinase cascade. MEKK1 is comprised of a kinase domain and a long amino-terminal regulatory domain. This amino-terminal domain has a scaffold function in that it can assemble modules of the JNK and ERK MAP kinase cascades. Recently, we have demonstrated that MEKK1 binds to p115 Rho GTPase-activating protein, which has GTPase-activating protein activity toward RhoA. Thus, we tested whether Rho GTPases interact with the regulatory domain of MEKK1. RhoA, but not Rac or Cdc42, binds to a site in the aminoterminal one-third of MEKK1, which includes its PHD domain. The interaction is prevented by mutation of the essential cysteine in the MEKK1 PHD domain. Rho-GTP stimulates the kinase activity of full-length MEKK1 as much as 10-fold toward MEK4 but does not appear to be ubiquitinated by MEKK1 under conditions that result in modification of ERK2. In summary, we have characterized a novel point at which Rho GTPases impinge upon the regulation and function of MEKK1.
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PMID:RhoA binds to the amino terminus of MEKK1 and regulates its kinase activity. 1458 71


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