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Query: UNIPROT:P51812 (mitogen-activated protein)
 10,636 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Activation of mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase (also known as extracellular-signal-regulated kinase, or ERK) by growth factors can trigger either cell growth or differentiation. The intracellular signals that couple growth factors to MAP kinase may determine the different effects of growth factors: for example, transient activation of MAP kinase by epidermal growth factor stimulates proliferation of PC12 cells, whereas they differentiate in response to nerve growth factor, which acts partly by inducing a sustained activation of MAP kinase. Here we show that activation of MAP kinase by nerve growth factor involves two distinct pathways: the initial activation of MAP kinase requires the small G protein Ras, but its activation is sustained by the small G protein Rap1. Rap1 is activated by CRK adaptor proteins and the guanine-nucleotide-exchange factor C3G, and forms a stable complex with B-Raf, an activator of MAP kinase. Rap1 is required for at least two indices of neuronal differentiation by nerve growth factor: electrical excitability and the induction of neuron-specific genes. We propose that the activation of Rap1 by C3G represents a common mechanism to induce sustained activation of the MAP kinase cascade in cells that express B-Raf.
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PMID:Rap1 mediates sustained MAP kinase activation induced by nerve growth factor. 956 Jan 48

3-methylcholanthrene (MC), a potent promutagen and procarcinogen, is also an inducer of mammalian CYPIAI (cytochrome P1-450) gene. The CYPIAI enzyme is responsible for the detoxification of MC and its oxidation into reactive epoxide intermediates. Through its epoxide metabolites, MC functions also as an inducer of drug-metabolizing enzyme glutathione S-transferase (GST) gene expression. Induction of murine GST Ya gene by MC and a variety of other chemical agents is mediated by a regulatory element composed of two adjacent AP-1-like sites, and activated by the Fos/Jun heterodimeric complex (AP-1). In cultured cells, MC causes the induction of AP-1 activity, which is the result of an increased expression of c-Fos and c-Jun proteins. The mechanisms involved in MC activation of c-fos and c-jun gene expression were examined in the present study. Evidence is presented that stimulation of c-fos transcription by MC involves a signal transduction pathway, which includes activation of the small G protein Ras, Raf-1 kinase, and the mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinases, ERK1 and ERK2. Furthermore, we find that phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate, which uses both protein kinase C and protein-tyrosine kinase activities to induce c-fos promoter, may share a common pathway with MC downstream of Ras. The signal transduction pathway induced by MC to stimulate c-jun promoter involves Ras activation and the JNK group of MAP-kinases.
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PMID:Signaling pathways in the induction of c-fos and c-jun proto-oncogenes by 3-methylcholanthrene. 963 28

Ras proteins, key regulators of growth, differentiation, and malignant transformation, recently have been implicated in synaptic function and region-specific learning and memory functions in the brain. Rap proteins, members of the Ras small G protein superfamily, can inhibit Ras signaling through the Ras/Raf-1/mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase pathway or, through B-Raf, can activate MAP kinase. Rap and Ras proteins both can be activated through guanine nucleotide exchange factors (GEFs). Many Ras GEFs, but to date only one Rap GEF, have been identified. We now report the cloning of a brain-enriched gene, CalDAG-GEFI, which has substrate specificity for Rap1A, dual binding domains for calcium (Ca2+) and diacylglycerol (DAG), and enriched expression in brain basal ganglia pathways and their axon-terminal regions. Expression of CalDAG-GEFI activates Rap1A and inhibits Ras-dependent activation of the Erk/MAP kinase cascade in 293T cells. Ca2+ ionophore and phorbol ester strongly and additively enhance this Rap1A activation. By contrast, CalDAG-GEFII, a second CalDAG-GEF family member that we cloned and found identical to RasGRP [Ebinu, J. O., Bottorff, D. A., Chan, E. Y. W., Stang, S. L., Dunn, R. J. & Stone, J. C. (1998) Science 280, 1082-1088], exhibits a different brain expression pattern and fails to activate Rap1A, but activates H-Ras, R-Ras, and the Erk/MAP kinase cascade under Ca2+ and DAG modulation. We propose that CalDAG-GEF proteins have a critical neuronal function in determining the relative activation of Ras and Rap1 signaling induced by Ca2+ and DAG mobilization. The expression of CalDAG-GEFI and CalDAG-GEFII in hematopoietic organs suggests that such control may have broad significance in Ras/Rap regulation of normal and malignant states.
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PMID:A Rap guanine nucleotide exchange factor enriched highly in the basal ganglia. 978 79

Hormones and growth factors regulate cell growth via the mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase cascade. Here we examine the actions of the hormone somatostatin on the MAP kinase cascade through one of its two major receptor subtypes, the somatostatin receptor 1 (SSTR1) stably expressed in CHO-K1 cells. Somatostatin antagonizes the proliferative effects of fibroblast growth factor in CHO-SSTR1 cells via the SSTR1 receptor. However, in these cells, somatostatin robustly activates MAP kinase (also called extracellular signal regulated kinase; ERK) and augments fibroblast growth factor-stimulated ERK activity. We show that the activation of ERK via SSTR1 is pertussis toxin sensitive and requires the small G protein Ras, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase, the serine/threonine kinase Raf-1, and the protein tyrosine phosphatase SHP-2. The activation of ERK by SSTR1 increased the expression of the cyclin-dependent protein kinase inhibitor p21(cip1/WAF1). Previous studies have suggested that somatostatin-stimulated protein tyrosine phosphatase activity mediates the growth effects of somatostatin. Our data suggest that SHP-2 stimulation by SSTR1 may mediate some of these effects through the activation of the MAP kinase cascade and the expression of p21(cip1/WAF1).
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PMID:Somatostatin activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase via somatostatin receptor 1 (SSTR1). 989 10

The A(2A)-adenosine receptor, a prototypical G(s)-coupled receptor, activates mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase in a manner independent of cAMP in primary human endothelial cells. In order to delineate signaling pathways that link the receptor to the regulation of MAP kinase, the human A(2A) receptor was heterologously expressed in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) and HEK293 cells. In both cell lines, A(2A) agonist-mediated cAMP accumulation was accompanied by activation of the small G protein rap1. However, rap1 mediates A(2A) receptor-dependent activation of MAP kinase only in CHO cells, the signaling cascade being composed of G(s), adenylyl cyclase, rap1, and the p68 isoform of B-raf. This isoform was absent in HEK293 cells. Contrary to CHO cells, in HEK293 cells activation of MAP kinase by A(2A) agonists was not mimicked by 8-bromo-cAMP, was independent of Galpha(s), and was associated with activation of p21(ras). Accordingly, overexpression of the inactive S17N mutant of p21(ras) and of a dominant negative version of mSos (the exchange factor of p21(ras)) blocked MAP kinase stimulation by the A(2A) receptor in HEK 293 but not in CHO cells. In spite of the close homology between p21(ras) and rap1, the S17N mutant of rap1 was not dominant negative because (i) overexpression of rap1(S17N) failed to inhibit A(2A) receptor-dependent MAP kinase activation, (ii) rap1(S17N) was recovered in the active form with a GST fusion protein comprising the rap1-binding domain of ralGDS after A(2A) receptor activation, and (iii) A(2A) agonists promoted the association of rap1(S17N) with the 68-kDa isoform of B-raf in CHO cells. We conclude that the A(2A) receptor has the capacity two activate MAP kinase via at least two signaling pathways, which depend on two distinct small G proteins, namely p21(ras) and rap1. Our observations also show that the S17N version of rap1 cannot be assumed a priori to act as a dominant negative interfering mutant.
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PMID:Activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase by the A(2A)-adenosine receptor via a rap1-dependent and via a p21(ras)-dependent pathway. 1046 24

In many normal and transformed cell types, the intracellular second messenger cyclic AMP (cAMP) blocks the effects of growth factors and serum on mitogenesis, proliferation, and cell cycle progression. cAMP exerts these growth-inhibitory effects via inhibition of the mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase cascade. Here, using Hek293 and NIH 3T3 cells, we show that cAMP's inhibition of the MAP kinase cascade is mediated by the small G protein Rap1. Activation of Rap1 by cAMP induces the association of Rap1 with Raf-1 and limits Ras-dependent activation of ERK. In NIH 3T3 cells, Rap1 is required not only for cAMP's inhibition of ERK activation but for inhibition of cell proliferation and mitogenesis as well.
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PMID:Cyclic AMP-mediated inhibition of cell growth requires the small G protein Rap1. 1134 Jan 61

Laminin-1 (LN) is expressed along the route of neural growth from spiral ganglion (SG) neurons towards the developing organ of Corti, and has been shown to enhance neurite outgrowth from SG neurons in vitro. Signal transduction pathways linking LN signaling at the cell membrane to the cell nucleus can involve a variety of signaling molecules. Data from other systems suggest the potential involvement of the small G protein Ras, and the mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) Erk and/or p38. To assess these possibilities, the length and number of processes extending from SG explants cultured on LN-coated surfaces were evaluated after treatment with the Ras inhibitor FTI-277, the p38 inhibitor SB203580 and MAPK kinase (MEK) inhibitor U0126, which operates immediately upstream of the Erk MAPK. Treatment with the Ras inhibitor at levels known to inhibit the H- and N-Ras isoforms had no effect, while FTI-277 levels known to inhibit K-Ras reduced only neurite length. Suppression of MEK resulted in a decrease of both parameters, while incubation with the p38 inhibitor had no effect. The results of this study suggest that MEK plays a central role in LN signaling in SG neurites. While K-Ras signaling may participate in MEK-dependent increases in neurite length, the MEK-dependent increase in neurite number appears to be activated by a different intracellular pathway.
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PMID:The effects of laminin-1 on spiral ganglion neurons are dependent on the MEK/ERK signaling pathway and are partially independent of Ras. 1195 May 19

This study evaluates the chemopreventive effects of topically applied perillyl alcohol on the development of melanoma in TPras transgenic mice. Our strategy was to target critical pathways in the development of melanoma, in particular, the ras pathway. Ras has been shown in our experimental mouse model, as well as others, to be important in the development and maintenance of melanomas. Perillyl alcohol (POH), a naturally occurring monoterpene, inhibits the isoprenylation of small G protein, including Ras. POH (10 mM) was applied to the shaved dorsal skin of TPras mice starting 1 week before five treatments of dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (50 microg) and was continued for 38 weeks. We observed a delay in the appearance of tumors and a 25-35% reduction in melanoma incidence. POH treatment of melanoma cells in vitro reduced the levels of detectable Ras protein and inhibits the activation of downstream targets, mitogen-activated protein kinases and Akt. POH only minimally induced apoptosis in this system. Pretreatment but not post-treatment of the melanoma cells with POH, however, markedly reduced levels of UV-induced reactive oxygen species. These studies suggest that POH inhibition of the Ras signaling pathway may be an effective target for chemoprevention of melanoma.
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PMID:Effects of perillyl alcohol on melanoma in the TPras mouse model. 1205 99

The small G protein RAP1 and the kinase B-RAF have been proposed to link elevations of cAMP to activation of ERK/mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase. In order to delineate signaling pathways that link receptor-generated cAMP to the activation of MAP kinase, the human A(2A)-adenosine receptor, a prototypical G(s)-coupled receptor, was heterologously expressed in Chinese hamster ovary cells (referred as CHO-A(2A) cells). In CHO-A(2A) cells, the stimulation of the A(2A)-receptor resulted in an activation of RAP1 and formation of RAP1-B-RAF complexes. However, overexpression of a RAP1 GTPase-activating protein (RAP1GAP), which efficiently clamped cellular RAP1 in the inactive GDP-bound form, did not affect A(2A)-agonist-mediated MAP kinase stimulation. In contrast, the inhibitor of protein kinase A H89 efficiently suppressed A(2A)-agonist-mediated MAP kinase stimulation. Neither dynamin-dependent receptor internalization nor receptor-promoted shedding of matrix-bound growth factors accounted for A(2A)-receptor-dependent MAP kinase activation. PP1, an inhibitor of SRC family kinases, blunted both the A(2A)-receptor- and the forskolin-induced MAP kinase stimulation (IC(50) = 50 nm); this was also seen in PC12 cells, which express the A(2A)-receptor endogenously, and in NIH3T3 fibroblasts, in which cAMP causes MAP kinase stimulation. In the corresponding murine fibroblast cell line SYF, which lacks the ubiquitously expressed SRC family kinases SRC, YES, and FYN, forskolin barely stimulated MAP kinase; this reduction was reversed in cells in which c-SRC had been reintroduced. These findings show that activation of MAP kinase by cAMP requires a SRC family kinase that lies downstream of protein kinase A. A role for RAP1, as documented for the beta(2)-adrenergic receptor, is apparently contingent on receptor endocytosis.
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PMID:MAP kinase stimulation by cAMP does not require RAP1 but SRC family kinases. 1208 90

In examining the protein kinase components of mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase (MAPK) cascades that regulate the c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) in Drosophila S2 cells, we previously found that distinct upstream kinases were involved in responses to sorbitol and lipopolysaccharide. Here we have extended that analysis to the possible MAPK kinase kinase kinases (MAP4Ks) in the JNK pathway. Fray, a putative Drosophila MAP4K, provided a major contribution to JNK activation by sorbitol. To explore the possible link to JNK in mammalian cells, we isolated and characterized OSR1 (oxidative stress-responsive 1), one of two human Fray homologs. OSR1 is a 58-kDa protein of 527 amino acids that is widely expressed in mammalian tissues and cell lines. Of potential regulators surveyed, endogenous OSR1 is activated only by osmotic stresses, notably sorbitol and to a lesser extent NaCl. However, OSR1 did not increase the activity of coexpressed JNK, nor did it activate three other MAPKs, p38, ERK2, and ERK5. A two-hybrid screen implicated another Ste20p family member, the p21-activated protein kinase PAK1, as an OSR1 target. OSR1 phosphorylated threonine 84 in the N-terminal regulatory domain of PAK1. Replacement of threonine 84 with glutamate reduced the activation of PAK1 by an active form of the small G protein Cdc42, suggesting that phosphorylation by OSR1 modulates the G protein sensitivity of PAK isoforms.
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PMID:Characterization of OSR1, a member of the mammalian Ste20p/germinal center kinase subfamily. 1470 32


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