Activation loop phosphorylation of ERK3/ERK4 by group I p21-activated kinases (PAKs) defines a novel PAK-ERK3/4-MAPK-activated protein kinase 5 signaling pathway

Classical mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinases are activated by dual phosphorylation of the Thr-Xxx-Tyr motif in their activation loop, which is catalyzed by members of the MAP kinase kinase family. The atypical MAP kinases extracellular signal-regulated kinase 3 (ERK3) and ERK4 contain a single phospho-acceptor site in this segment and are not substrates of MAP kinase kinases. Previous studies have shown that ERK3 and ERK4 are phosphorylated on activation loop residue Ser-189/Ser-186, resulting in their catalytic activation. However, the identity of the protein kinase mediating this regulatory event has remained elusive. We have used an unbiased biochemical purification approach to isolate the kinase activity responsible for ERK3 Ser-189 phosphorylation. Here, we report the identification of group I p21-activated kinases (PAKs) as ERK3/ERK4 activation loop kinases. We show that group I PAKs phosphorylate ERK3 and ERK4 on Ser-189 and Ser-186, respectively, both in vitro and in vivo, and that expression of activated Rac1 augments this response. Reciprocally, silencing of PAK1/2/3 expression by RNA interference (RNAi) completely abolishes Rac1-induced Ser-189 phosphorylation of ERK3. Importantly, we demonstrate that PAK-mediated phosphorylation of ERK3/ERK4 results in their enzymatic activation and in downstream activation of MAP kinase-activated protein kinase 5 (MK5) in vivo. Our results reveal that group I PAKs act as upstream activators of ERK3 and ERK4 and unravel a novel PAK-ERK3/ERK4-MK5 signaling pathway.     

IFIT家族基因抑制A型流感病毒WSN毒株的复制和转录

IFIT(Interferon induced proteins with tetratricopeptide repeats)家族基因是一组较早发现的干扰素刺激基因,它在抗病毒和免疫调节中发挥了重要作用。为研究IFIT家族基因抑制A型流感病毒复制的机理,利用高通量RNA深度测序(RNA-Seq)技术发现A型流感病毒A/WSN/33(WSN)毒株感染293T细胞后,IFIT家族基因均出现明显上调。同时发现在IFIT2、IFIT3过表达后,流感病毒的复制和转录均有明显下调,并对v RNP聚合酶活性具有剂量依赖型的抑制作用。进一步研究证明在感染IFIT2、IFIT3编码蛋白与流感病毒非结构蛋白(NS1)存在细胞内共定位,证明二者存在相互作用的可能。综上所述,IFIT家族基因可以抑制A型流感病毒的复制和转录,有助于进一步阐明宿主因子对流感病毒感染的调节机制。     

p21-activated Kinases (PAKs) Mediate the Phosphorylation of PREX2 Protein to Initiate Feedback Inhibition of Rac1 GTPase

Phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-trisphosphate (PIP₃)-dependent Rac exchanger 2 (PREX2) is a guanine nucleotide exchange factor (GEF) for the Ras-related C3 botulinum toxin substrate 1 (Rac1) GTPase, facilitating the exchange of GDP for GTP on Rac1. GTP-bound Rac1 then activates its downstream effectors, including p21-activated kinases (PAKs). PREX2 and Rac1 are frequently mutated in cancer and have key roles within the insulin-signaling pathway. Rac1 can be inactivated by multiple mechanisms; however, negative regulation by insulin is not well understood. Here, we show that in response to being activated after insulin stimulation, Rac1 initiates its own inactivation by decreasing PREX2 GEF activity. Following PREX2-mediated activation of Rac1 by the second messengers PIP₃ or Gβγ, we found that PREX2 was phosphorylated through a PAK-dependent mechanism. PAK-mediated phosphorylation of PREX2 reduced GEF activity toward Rac1 by inhibiting PREX2 binding to PIP₃ and Gβγ. Cell fractionation experiments also revealed that phosphorylation prevented PREX2 from localizing to the cellular membrane. Furthermore, the onset of insulin-induced phosphorylation of PREX2 was delayed compared with AKT. Altogether, we propose that second messengers activate the Rac1 signal, which sets in motion a cascade whereby PAKs phosphorylate and negatively regulate PREX2 to decrease Rac1 activation. This type of regulation would allow for transient activation of the PREX2-Rac1 signal and may be relevant in multiple physiological processes, including diseases such as diabetes and cancer when insulin signaling is chronically activated.     

P21活化激酶在肿瘤的作用

p21活化激酶（p21-activated kinase,PAKs）是小G蛋白Rac和细胞分裂调控蛋白42（Cdc42）的一类效应蛋白质. PAKs是一类进化保守的丝氨酸/苏氨酸蛋白激酶,在细胞骨架重排、细胞增生、细胞存活及增殖等方面发挥重要作用. 在哺乳动物中根据结构特征可将PAKs分为2个亚家族I类（A组）和Ⅱ类（B组）：I类包括PAK1、PAK2和PAK3,Ⅱ类包括PAK4,PAK5和PAK6. 近年来,对PAKs在肿瘤发生发展中作用的研究成为焦点.本文对PAKs中各成员的结构功能,及其在肿瘤发生发展过程中的作用等方面进行简要综述.     

Transport of influenza virus neuraminidase (NA) to host cell surface is regulated by ARHGAP21 and Cdc42 proteins

Influenza virus neuraminidase (NA) is transported to the virus assembly site at the plasma membrane and is a major viral envelope component that plays a critical role in the release of progeny virions and in determination of host range restriction. However, little is known about the host factors that are involved in regulating the intracellular and cell surface transport of NA. Here we identified the Cdc42-specific GAP, ARHGAP21 differentially expressed in host cells infected with influenza A virus using cDNA microarray analysis. Furthermore, we have investigated the involvement of Rho family GTPases in NA transport to the cell surface. We found that expression of constitutively active or inactive mutants of RhoA or Rac1 did not significantly affect the amount of NA that reached the cell surface. However, expression of constitutively active Cdc42 or depletion of ARHGAP21 promoted the transport of NA to the plasma membranes. By contrast, cells expressing shRNA targeting Cdc42 or overexpressing ARHGAP21 exhibited a significant decrease in the amount of cell surface-localized NA. Importantly, silencing Cdc42 reduced influenza A virus replication, whereas silencing ARHGAP21 increased the virus replication. Together, our results reveal that ARHGAP21- and Cdc42-based signaling regulates the NA transport and thereby impacts virus replication.     

A computational approach to explore and identify potential herbal inhibitors for the p21-activated kinase 1 (PAK1)

Abstract

The oncogenic kinase PAK1 (p21-activated kinase 1) is involved in developing many diseases including cancers, neurofibromatosis, Alzheimer's disease, diabetes (type 2), and hypertension. Thus, it is thought to be a prominent therapeutic target, and its selective inhibitors have a huge market potential. Recently, herbal PAK1 inhibitors have gained immense interest over synthetic ones mainly due to their non-toxic effects. Till date, many herbal compounds have been suggested to inhibit PAK1, but their information on selectivity, bioavailability, ADMET (absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion, and toxicity) properties, and molecular interactions with PAK1 has not been explored. Hence, this study was designed with computational approaches to explore and identify the best herbal PAK1-blockers showing good ADMET properties, druggable features and binding affinity with PAK1. Herbal inhibitors reported here were initially filtered with Lipinski’s rule of five (RO5). Then, molecular docking between these inhibitors and PAK1 catalytic sites was performed using AutoDock Vina and GOLD suite to determine the binding affinity and interactions. Finally, 200?ns molecular dynamics (MD) simulations on three top-ranked inhibitors including cucurbitacin I (C-I), nymphaeol A (NA), and staurosporine (SPN) were carried out. The binding free energies and interactions revealed that NA can strongly bind with the PAK1 catalytic cleft. PASS prediction and ADMET profiling supported that NA is appeared to be a more selective and safer inhibitor than C-I and SPN. These results conform to the previous experimental evidences, and therefore, NA from Okinawa propolis could be a promising inhibitor for treating PAK1-dependent illnesses.

Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma     

Molecular mechanisms of transcription and replication of the influenza A virus genome

Influenza A virus is one of the major pathogens that pose a large threat to human health worldwide and has caused pandemics.Influenza A virus is the Orthomyxoviridae prototype,and has 8 segmented negat...     

Novel pandemic influenza A (H1N1) virus infection modulates apoptotic pathways that impact its replication in A549 cells

It is not well-known whether apoptosis signaling affects influenza virus infection and reproduction in human lung epithelial cells. Using A549 cell line, we studied the relationship of some apoptosis-associated molecules with novel pandemic influenza A (H1N1) virus, A/California/04/2009. Infected cells displayed upregulated Fas ligand, activated FADD and caspase-8, and downregulated FLIP in the extrinsic apoptotic pathway. p53 expression increased and Bcl-X_L expression decreased in the intrinsic pathway. Expression of pre-apoptotic molecules (FasL, FADD, and p53) increased virus replication, while inhibition of activity of FADD, caspase-8 and caspase-3, and expression of anti-apoptotic proteins (FLIP and Bcl-X_L) decreased virus replication. p38, ERK and JNK from MAPK pathways were activated in infected cells, and inhibition with their inhibitors diminished virus replication. In the p38 superfamily, p38α expression increased viral RNA production, while expression of p38β and p38γ decreased. These data indicated that influenza virus induces apoptotic signaling pathways, which benefit virus replication.     

A proteomics approach to survey the antigenicity of the influenza virus by mass spectrometry

A proteomics-based approach is described that combines gel electrophoresis and MS in order to identify protein interactions and the nature of the interaction interface with high-sample throughput and sensitivity. Results for protein antigens of the influenza virus have demonstrated that the approach can be successfully employed to detect determinants within the hemagglutinin antigen of two divergent type A forms of the virus in present circulation. The determinants are localised to residues 206-224 following tryptic digestion of the hemagglutinin antigen. Specific peptide-antibody complexes formed after treatment of gel-recovered antigen are shown to be able to be preserved on the MALDI target array as has been previously demonstrated in this laboratory for whole virus. The approach has broad applicability for the analysis of a wide array of protein complexes with identification of the interaction interface in a single step with high-sample throughput and at low sample levels.     

miR26a和miR939调控H1N1型流感病毒在MDCK细胞中的复制

摘要：【目的】研究发现microRNAs（miRNAs）可以参与调控病毒在宿主细胞内感染和复制的过程。作者研究了两条miRNAs对H1N1型流感病毒在宿主细胞内复制的影响。【方法】构建miR26a和miR939的高效表达载体,并将这两种表达载体转入MDCK细胞中,24 h后用H1N1型流感病毒感染转染后的MDCK (Madin dardy canine kidney) 细胞,接种72 h后,检测流感病毒的复制情况,研究miR26a和miR939对H1N1型流感病毒在MDCK细胞内复制的影响。【结果】实验结果表明,miRNAs的表达载体可以在细胞内高效表达miRNAs,不同的miRNAs对流感病毒在MDCK细胞中复制的调控作用不同, miR26a可以有效抑制流感病毒在MDCK细胞中的复制,而miR939则促进流感病毒在MDCK细胞中的复制的作用。【结论】细胞内miRNAs可以调控H1N1型流感病毒在宿主细胞中的复制过程,本文首次报导miR26a和miR939在流感病毒复制过程中的调控作用。     

一株2011年出现的季节性甲型H1N1流行性感冒病毒血凝素基因特性的研究

本文通过比较2011年分离培养的1株季节性甲型H1N1流行性感冒(简称流感)病毒(A/Shanghai/1167/2011(H1N1))与历年季节性甲型H1N1流感病毒的血凝素(HA)基因,追溯该病毒的基因变异与来源,探讨该毒株的出现对流感防控工作的意义.采用反转录-聚合酶链反应(RT-PCR)方法扩增病毒的HA和神经氨酸酶(NA)片段,并进行测序;应用分子生物学软件对获得的序列进行分析,绘制基因进化树;同时,通过血凝抑制试验检测2011年下半年健康人群中该流感病毒的抗体水平.结果显示,A/Shanghai/1167/2011(H1N1)的HA基因序列与世界卫生组织(WHO)2007～2008年季节性甲型H1N1流感病毒疫苗株A/Brisbane/59/2007(H1N1)最接近,同源性达99.2%,与新型甲型H1N1流感病毒A/California/07/2009疫苗株同源性仅为72.4%.其HA基因裂解位点为PSIQSR↓GLF,尚未出现高致病性的分子特征.HA片段共编码557个氨基酸,有9个潜在的糖基化位点,序列与2009年前WHO疫苗株A/NewCaledonia/20/1999(H1N1)、A/SolomonIslands/3/2006(H1N1)和/Brisbane/59/2007(H1N1)相比,分别有15、12和4处不同,这些差异分布在Sa、Sb、Ca1、Ca2、Cb 5个抗原决定簇的氨基酸差异分别有5、5和2处.该毒株在健康人群血清的抗体阳性率为34.33%,几何平均效价(GMT)为10.38.A/Shanghai/1167/2011(H1N1)是2011年出现在上海地区的一个季节性甲型H1N1流感病毒毒株,其抗原变异与既往季节性甲型H1N1流感病毒相比不大,但在以A(H1N1)pdm09为主要流行株的年份检测到散在发生的既往季节性甲型H1N1流感病毒毒株应当引起重视,其在人群中的抗体水平较低,易引起流行,需要提高对类流感人群中此种毒株的持续监测.     

Nucleolin interacts with the rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus replicase RdRp,nonstructural proteins p16 and p23, playing a role in virus replication

Rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) is a member of the Caliciviridae family and cannot be propagated in vitro, which has impeded the progress of investigating its replication mechanism. Construction of an RHDV replicon system has recently provided a platform for exploring RHDV replication in host cells. Here, aided by this replicon system and using two-step affinity purification, we purified the RHDV replicase and identified its associated host factors. We identified rabbit nucleolin (NCL) as a physical link, which mediating the interaction between other RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp)-related host proteins and the viral replicase RdRp. We found that the overexpression or knockdown of NCL significantly increased or severely impaired RHDV replication in RK-13 cells, respectively. NCL was identified to directly interact with RHDV RdRp, p16, and p23. Furthermore, NCL knockdown severely impaired the binding of RdRp to RdRp-related host factors. Collectively, these results indicate that the host protein NCL is essential for RHDV replication and acts as a physical link between viral replicase and host proteins.     

Diagnosis of influenza viruses with special reference to novel H1N1 2009 influenza virus

On 15 April and 17 April 2009, novel swineorigin influenza A (H1N1) virus was identifi ed in specimens obtained from two epidemiologically unlinked patients in the United States. The ongoing outbreak of novel H1N1 2009 influenza (swine influenza) has caused more than 3,99,232 laboratory confi rmed cases of pandemic influenza H1N1 and over 4735 deaths globally. This novel 2009 influenza virus designated as H1N1 A/swine/California/04/2009 virus is not zoonotic swine flu and is transmitted from person to person and has higher transmissibility then that of seasonal influenza viruses. In India the novel H1N1 virus infection has been reported from all over the country. A total of 68,919 samples from clinically suspected persons have been tested for influenza A H1N1 across the country and 13,330 (18.9%) of them have been found positive with 427 deaths. At the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi India, we tested 1096 clinical samples for the presence of novel H1N1 influenza virus and seasonal influenza viruses. Of these 1096 samples, 194 samples (17.7%) were positive for novel H1N1 influenza virus and 197 samples (18%) were positive for seasonal influenza viruses. During outbreaks of emerging infectious diseases accurate and rapid diagnosis is critical for minimizing further spread through timely implementation of appropriate vaccines and antiviral treatment. Since the symptoms of novel H1N1 influenza infection are not specifi c, laboratory confi rmation of suspected cases is of prime importance.     

Functional association between influenza A (H1N1) virus and human

Influenza A (H1N1) virus is a severe threat worldwide. It is important to gain a better understanding of the mechanism of the infection. In the paper, we established a computational framework to investigate the crosstalk between the virus and the host, by finding out the proteins that the virus is attacking. The targeted proteins were predicted by taking human proteins laid on the same GO functions or processes as the virus proteins. One hundred and one core proteins were identified. The results provide some knowledge of the possible biological processes and molecular interactions caused by the viral infection, including the host responses.     

A dimeric kinase assembly underlying autophosphorylation in the p21 activated kinases

The microtubule-associated protein tau is impacted in neurodegeneration and dementia through its deposition in the form of paired helical filaments in Alzheimer's disease neurofibrillary tangles and through mutations linking it to the autosomal dominant disorder frontotemporal dementia with Parkinsonism. When isolated in solution tau is intrinsically unstructured and does not fold, while the conformation of the protein in the microtubule-bound state remains uncharacterized. Here we show that the repeat region of tau, which has been reported both to mediate tau microtubule interactions and to constitute the proteolysis-resistant core of disease-associated tau aggregates, associates with lipid micelles and vesicles and folds into an ordered structure upon doing so. In addition to providing the first structural insights into a folded state of tau, our results support a role for lipid membranes in mediating tau function and tau pathology.     

p21-Activated Kinase 1 (PAK1) Can Promote ERK Activation in a Kinase-independent Manner

PAK1 plays an important role in proliferation and tumorigenesis, at least partially by promoting ERK phosphorylation of C-RAF (Ser-338) or MEK1 (Ser-298). We observed how that overexpression of a kinase-dead mutant form of PAK1 increased phosphorylation of MEK1/2 (Ser-217/Ser-221) and ERK (Thr-202/Tyr-204), although phosphorylation of B-RAF (Ser-445) and C-RAF (Ser-338) remained unchanged. Furthermore, increased activation of the PAK1 activator Rac1 induced the formation of a triple complex of Rac1, PAK1, and MEK1 independent of the kinase activity of PAK1. These data suggest that PAK1 can stimulate MEK activity in a kinase-independent manner, probably by serving as a scaffold to facilitate interaction of C-RAF.     

Synapsin I is phosphorylated at Ser603 by p21-activated kinases (PAKs) in vitro and in PC12 cells stimulated with bradykinin

The function of synapsin I is regulated by phosphorylation of the molecule at multiple sites; among them, the Ser(603) residue (site 3) is considered to be a pivotal site targeted by Ca(2+)/calmodulin-dependent kinase II (CaMKII). Although phosphorylation of the Ser(603) residue responds to several kinds of stimuli, it is unlikely that many or all of the stimuli activate the CaMKII-involved pathway. Among the several stimulants tested in PC12 cells, bradykinin evoked the phosphorylation of Ser(603) without inducing the autophosphorylation of CaMKII, which was determined using phosphorylation site-specific antibodies against phospho-Ser(603)-synapsin I (pS603-Syn I-Ab) and phospho-Thr(286/287)-CaMKII. The bradykinin-evoked phosphorylation of Ser(603) was not suppressed by the CaMKII inhibitor KN62, whereas high KCl-evoked phosphorylation was accompanied by CaMKII autophosphorylation and inhibited by KN62. Thus, we attempted to identify Ser(603) kinase(s) besides CaMKII. We consequently detected four and three fractions with Ca(2+)/calmodulin-independent Ser(603) kinase activity on the DEAE column chromatography of bovine brain homogenate and PC12 cell lysate, respectively, two of which were purified and identified by amino acid sequence of proteolytic fragments as p21-activated kinase (PAK) 1 and PAK3. The immunoprecipitants from bovine brain homogenate with anti-PAK1 and PAK3 antibodies incorporated (32)P into synapsin I in a Cdc42/GTPgammaS-dependent manner, and its phosphorylation site was confirmed as Ser(603) using pS603-Syn I-Ab. Additionally, recombinant GST-PAK2 could phosphorylate the Ser(603) residue in the presence of Cdc42/GTPgammaS. Finally, we confirmed by immunocytochemical analysis that the transfection of constitutively active rat alphaPAK (PAK1) in PC12 cells evokes the phosphorylation of Ser(603) even in the resting mutant cells and enhances it in the bradykinin-stimulated cells, whereas that of dominant-negative alphaPAK quenches the phosphorylation. These results raise the possibility that Ser(603) on synapsin I is alternatively phosphorylated by PAKs, not only by CaMKII, in neuronal cells in response to some stimulants.     

甲型H1N1流感病毒佐剂疫苗小鼠免疫效果

为了探讨甲型H1N1流感病毒氢氧化铝佐剂疫苗对小鼠的免疫作用及对小鼠繁殖性能的影响,以不同剂量、不同免疫程序免疫小鼠后定期采血;用血凝抑制(HI)方法检测血清H1N1流感病毒HI抗体滴度,观察H1N1流感病毒佐剂疫苗对小鼠受孕、产仔、哺乳的影响;比较孕鼠及非孕鼠的抗体滴度,免疫后孕鼠所产仔鼠的体重及H1N1胎传抗体水平。结果显示,以0.5μg组开始的不同剂量、不同免疫程序均可使小鼠产生90倍以上水平的H1N1流感病毒抗体;免疫后的小鼠不影响受孕、产仔及哺乳;仔鼠保护性抗体可持续1个月以上。H1N1流感病毒佐剂疫苗是一种高免疫原性的制剂,用低剂量免疫,即可产生90倍以上持续时间较长的保护性抗体。这种佐剂疫苗对小鼠的繁殖性能无明显影响,免疫产生的抗体经胎盘可垂直传递给仔鼠。     

Dimer interface of the effector domain of non-structural protein 1 from influenza A virus: an interface with multiple functions

Non-structural protein 1 from influenza A virus, NS1A, is a key multifunctional virulence factor composed of two domains: an N-terminal double-stranded RNA (dsRNA)-binding domain and a C-terminal effector domain (ED). Isolated RNA-binding and effector domains of NS1A both exist as homodimers in solution. Despite recent crystal structures of isolated ED and full-length NS1A proteins from different influenza virus strains, controversy remains over the actual biologically relevant ED dimer interface. Here, we report the biophysical properties of the NS1A ED from H3N2 influenza A/Udorn/307/1972 (Ud) virus in solution. Several lines of evidence, including (15)N NMR relaxation, NMR chemical shift perturbations, static light scattering, and analytical sedimentation equilibrium, demonstrate that Ud NS1A ED forms a relatively weak dimer in solution (K(d) = 90 ± 2 μm), featuring a symmetric helix-helix dimer interface. Mutations within and near this interface completely abolish dimerization, whereas mutations consistent with other proposed ED dimer interfaces have no effect on dimer formation. In addition, the critical Trp-187 residue in this interface serves as a sensitive NMR spectroscopic marker for the concentration-dependent dimerization of NS1A ED in solution. Finally, dynamic light scattering and gel shift binding experiments demonstrate that the ED interface plays a role in both the oligomerization and the dsRNA binding properties of the full-length NS1A protein. In particular, mutation of the critical tryptophan in the ED interface substantially reduces the propensity of full-length NS1A from different strains to oligomerize and results in a reduction in dsRNA binding affinity for full-length NS1A.