Peter K.  Jackson

Abstract

CONTRIBUTING REVIEWERS: We would like to thank all our reviewers for their contribution to the success of Cilia. Their voluntary participation has led to the launch of a new journal consistently publishing high quality articles and an intelligent peer review process for all our authors.

View details for DOI 10.1186/2046-2530-2-4

View details for PubMedID 23497485

View details for DOI 10.1186/2046-2530-1-5

View details for PubMedID 23351843

View details for DOI 10.1186/2046-2530-1-1

View details for PubMedID 23351984

Abstract

Oncogenic mutations in the mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway are prevalent in human tumors, making this pathway a target of drug development efforts. Recently, ATP-competitive Raf inhibitors were shown to cause MAPK pathway activation via Raf kinase priming in wild-type BRaf cells and tumors, highlighting the need for a thorough understanding of signaling in the context of small molecule kinase inhibitors. Here, we present critical improvements in cell-line engineering and image analysis coupled with automated image acquisition that allow for the simultaneous identification of cellular localization of multiple MAPK pathway components (KRas, CRaf, Mek1 and Erk2). We use these assays in a systematic study of the effect of small molecule inhibitors across the MAPK cascade either as single agents or in combination. Both Raf inhibitor priming as well as the release from negative feedback induced by Mek and Erk inhibitors cause translocation of CRaf to the plasma membrane via mechanisms that are additive in pathway activation. Analysis of Erk activation and sub-cellular localization upon inhibitor treatments reveals differential inhibition and activation with the Raf inhibitors AZD628 and GDC0879 respectively. Since both single agent and combination studies of Raf and Mek inhibitors are currently in the clinic, our assays provide valuable insight into their effects on MAPK signaling in live cells.

View details for DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0022607

View details for Web of Science ID 000293561200025

View details for PubMedID 21829637

Abstract

Cell cycle progression requires the E3 ubiquitin ligase anaphase-promoting complex (APC/C), which uses the substrate adaptors CDC20 and CDH1 to target proteins for proteasomal degradation. The APC(CDH1) substrate cyclin A is critical for the G1/S transition and, paradoxically, accumulates even when APC(CDH1) is active. We show that the deubiquitinase USP37 binds CDH1 and removes degradative polyubiquitin from cyclin A. USP37 was induced by E2F transcription factors in G1, peaked at G1/S, and was degraded in late mitosis. Phosphorylation of USP37 by CDK2 stimulated its full activity. USP37 overexpression caused premature cyclin A accumulation in G1 and accelerated S phase entry, whereas USP37 knockdown delayed these events. USP37 was inactive in mitosis because it was no longer phosphorylated by CDK2. Indeed, it switched from an antagonist to a substrate of APC(CDH1) and was modified with degradative K11-linked polyubiquitin.

View details for DOI 10.1016/j.molcel.2011.03.027

View details for Web of Science ID 000291113800013

View details for PubMedID 21596315

Abstract

Microtubules have pivotal roles in fundamental cellular processes and are targets of antitubulin chemotherapeutics. Microtubule-targeted agents such as Taxol and vincristine are prescribed widely for various malignancies, including ovarian and breast adenocarcinomas, non-small-cell lung cancer, leukaemias and lymphomas. These agents arrest cells in mitosis and subsequently induce cell death through poorly defined mechanisms. The strategies that resistant tumour cells use to evade death induced by antitubulin agents are also unclear. Here we show that the pro-survival protein MCL1 (ref. 3) is a crucial regulator of apoptosis triggered by antitubulin chemotherapeutics. During mitotic arrest, MCL1 protein levels decline markedly, through a post-translational mechanism, potentiating cell death. Phosphorylation of MCL1 directs its interaction with the tumour-suppressor protein FBW7, which is the substrate-binding component of a ubiquitin ligase complex. The polyubiquitylation of MCL1 then targets it for proteasomal degradation. The degradation of MCL1 was blocked in patient-derived tumour cells that lacked FBW7 or had loss-of-function mutations in FBW7, conferring resistance to antitubulin agents and promoting chemotherapeutic-induced polyploidy. Additionally, primary tumour samples were enriched for FBW7 inactivation and elevated MCL1 levels, underscoring the prominent roles of these proteins in oncogenesis. Our findings suggest that profiling the FBW7 and MCL1 status of tumours, in terms of protein levels, messenger RNA levels and genetic status, could be useful to predict the response of patients to antitubulin chemotherapeutics.

View details for DOI 10.1038/nature09779

View details for Web of Science ID 000287924100044

View details for PubMedID 21368834

Abstract

Dynamic instability is a critical property of microtubules (MTs). By regulating the rate of tubulin polymerization and depolymerization, cells organize the MT cytoskeleton to accommodate their specific functions. Among many processes, posttranslational modifications of tubulin are implicated in regulating MT functions. Here we report a novel tubulin acetylation catalyzed by acetyltransferase San at lysine 252 (K252) of ?-tubulin. This acetylation, which is also detected in vivo, is added to soluble tubulin heterodimers but not tubulins in MTs. The acetylation-mimicking K252A/Q mutants were incorporated into the MT cytoskeleton in HeLa cells without causing any obvious MT defect. However, after cold-induced catastrophe, MT regrowth is accelerated in San-siRNA cells while the incorporation of acetylation-mimicking mutant tubulins is severely impeded. K252 of ?-tubulin localizes at the interface of ?-/?-tubulins and interacts with the phosphate group of the ?-tubulin-bound GTP. We propose that the acetylation slows down tubulin incorporation into MTs by neutralizing the positive charge on K252 and allowing tubulin heterodimers to adopt a conformation that disfavors tubulin incorporation.

View details for DOI 10.1091/mbc.E10-03-0203

View details for Web of Science ID 000287305700002

View details for PubMedID 21177827

Abstract

Sensory and signaling pathways are exquisitely organized in primary cilia. Bardet-Biedl syndrome (BBS) patients have compromised cilia and signaling. BBS proteins form the BBSome, which binds Rabin8, a guanine nucleotide exchange factor (GEF) activating the Rab8 GTPase, required for ciliary assembly. We now describe serum-regulated upstream vesicular transport events leading to centrosomal Rab8 activation and ciliary membrane formation. Using live microscopy imaging, we show that upon serum withdrawal Rab8 is observed to assemble the ciliary membrane in ?100 min. Rab8-dependent ciliary assembly is initiated by the relocalization of Rabin8 to Rab11-positive vesicles that are transported to the centrosome. After ciliogenesis, Rab8 ciliary transport is strongly reduced, and this reduction appears to be associated with decreased Rabin8 centrosomal accumulation. Rab11-GTP associates with the Rabin8 COOH-terminal region and is required for Rabin8 preciliary membrane trafficking to the centrosome and for ciliogenesis. Using zebrafish as a model organism, we show that Rabin8 and Rab11 are associated with the BBS pathway. Finally, using tandem affinity purification and mass spectrometry, we determined that the transport protein particle (TRAPP) II complex associates with the Rabin8 NH(2)-terminal domain and show that TRAPP II subunits colocalize with centrosomal Rabin8 and are required for Rabin8 preciliary targeting and ciliogenesis.

View details for DOI 10.1073/pnas.1018823108

View details for Web of Science ID 000287377000029

View details for PubMedID 21273506

Abstract

Nephronophthisis-related ciliopathies (NPHP-RC) are recessive disorders that feature dysplasia or degeneration occurring preferentially in the kidney, retina and cerebellum. Here we combined homozygosity mapping with candidate gene analysis by performing 'ciliopathy candidate exome capture' followed by massively parallel sequencing. We identified 12 different truncating mutations of SDCCAG8 (serologically defined colon cancer antigen 8, also known as CCCAP) in 10 families affected by NPHP-RC. We show that SDCCAG8 is localized at both centrioles and interacts directly with OFD1 (oral-facial-digital syndrome 1), which is associated with NPHP-RC. Depletion of sdccag8 causes kidney cysts and a body axis defect in zebrafish and induces cell polarity defects in three-dimensional renal cell cultures. This work identifies loss of SDCCAG8 function as a cause of a retinal-renal ciliopathy and validates exome capture analysis for broadly heterogeneous single-gene disorders.

View details for DOI 10.1038/ng.662

View details for Web of Science ID 000282276600013

View details for PubMedID 20835237

Abstract

The mechanisms that control E2F-1 activity are complex. We previously showed that Chk1 and Chk2 are required for E2F1 stabilization and p73 target gene induction following DNA damage. To gain further insight into the processes regulating E2F1 protein stability, we focused our investigation on the mechanisms responsible for regulating E2F1 turnover. Here we show that E2F1 is a substrate of the anaphase promoting complex or cyclosome (APC/C), a ubiquitin ligase that plays an important role in cell cycle progression. Ectopic expression of the APC/C activators Cdh1 and Cdc20 reduced the levels of co-expressed E2F-1 protein. Co-expression of DP1 with E2F1 blocked APC/C-induced E2F1 degradation, suggesting that the E2F1/DP1 heterodimer is protected from APC/C regulation. Following Cdc20 knockdown, E2F1 levels increased and remained stable in extracts over a time course, indicating that APC/C(Cdc20) is a primary regulator of E2F1 stability in vivo. Moreover, cell synchronization experiments showed that siRNA directed against Cdc20 induced an accumulation of E2F1 protein in prometaphase cells. These data suggest that APC/C(Cdc20) specifically targets E2F1 for degradation in early mitosis and reveal a novel mechanism for limiting free E2F1 levels in cells, failure of which may compromise cell survival and/or homeostasis.

View details for DOI 10.4161/cc.9.19.13162

View details for Web of Science ID 000282703600026

View details for PubMedID 20948288

Abstract

Taxanes are very effective at causing mitotic arrest; however, there is variability among cancer cells in the apoptotic response to mitotic arrest. The variability in clinical efficacy of taxane-based therapy is likely a reflection of this variability in apoptotic response, thus elucidation of the molecular mechanism of the apoptotic response to mitotic stress could lead to improved clinical strategies. To identify genes whose expression influences the rate and extent of apoptosis after mitotic arrest, we screened a kinase-enriched small interfering RNA library for effects on caspase activation in response to maximally effective doses of paclitaxel, a PLK1 inhibitor, or cisplatin. Small interfering RNA oligonucleotides directed against an atypical protein kinase, TP53RK, caused the greatest increase in caspase-3/7 activation in response to antimitotic agents. Time-lapse microscopy revealed that cells entered mitosis with normal kinetics, but died after entry into mitosis in the presence of paclitaxel more rapidly when TP53RK was depleted. Because expression levels of TP53RK vary in cancers, TP53RK levels could provide a molecular marker to predict response to antimitotic agents. TP53RK inhibition may also sensitize cancers to taxanes.

View details for DOI 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-10-0015

View details for Web of Science ID 000280557500023

View details for PubMedID 20647325

Abstract

The autosomal recessive kidney disease nephronophthisis (NPHP) constitutes the most frequent genetic cause of terminal renal failure in the first 3 decades of life. Ten causative genes (NPHP1-NPHP9 and NPHP11), whose products localize to the primary cilia-centrosome complex, support the unifying concept that cystic kidney diseases are "ciliopathies". Using genome-wide homozygosity mapping, we report here what we believe to be a new locus (NPHP-like 1 [NPHPL1]) for an NPHP-like nephropathy. In 2 families with an NPHP-like phenotype, we detected homozygous frameshift and splice-site mutations, respectively, in the X-prolyl aminopeptidase 3 (XPNPEP3) gene. In contrast to all known NPHP proteins, XPNPEP3 localizes to mitochondria of renal cells. However, in vivo analyses also revealed a likely cilia-related function; suppression of zebrafish xpnpep3 phenocopied the developmental phenotypes of ciliopathy morphants, and this effect was rescued by human XPNPEP3 that was devoid of a mitochondrial localization signal. Consistent with a role for XPNPEP3 in ciliary function, several ciliary cystogenic proteins were found to be XPNPEP3 substrates, for which resistance to N-terminal proline cleavage resulted in attenuated protein function in vivo in zebrafish. Our data highlight an emerging link between mitochondria and ciliary dysfunction, and suggest that further understanding the enzymatic activity and substrates of XPNPEP3 will illuminate novel cystogenic pathways.

View details for DOI 10.1172/JCI40076

View details for Web of Science ID 000275272700017

View details for PubMedID 20179356

Abstract

Deubiquitinating enzymes (DUBs) act on ubiquitinated substrates to regulate their modification and stability. In this issue, Sowa et al. (2009) present a comprehensive proteomic analysis of DUB interacting proteins in humans and a new quantitative scoring system for hits (CompPASS), providing a resource that links DUBs to biological pathways.

View details for DOI 10.1016/j.cell.2009.07.008

View details for Web of Science ID 000268277000003

View details for PubMedID 19632171

Abstract

We present an optimized system for rapid generation of localization and affinity purification-tagged mammalian stable cell lines that facilitates complex purification and interacting protein identification. The improved components of this method, including the flexibility of inducible expression, circumvent issues associated with toxicity, clonal selection, sample yields and time to data acquisition. We have applied this method to the study of cell-cycle regulators and novel microtubule-associated proteins.

View details for DOI 10.1002/pmic.200800873

View details for Web of Science ID 000266707800024

View details for PubMedID 19405035

Abstract

The Anaphase Promoting Complex (APC) ubiquitin ligase is critical for multiple processes including cell cycle, development, meiosis, and senescence. The importance of regulation of the APC by substrate competitive (pseudosubstrate) inhibitors, such as Emi1 and BubR1, has recently been demonstrated. Substrate competitive inhibitors typically bind to enzymes via the same site as substrates, but by having any combination of increased enzyme affinity and low turnover numbers, are able to "clog" the ability of the enzyme to bind and turnover substrates. For the APC, these pseudosubstrates can both position and block the APC and have been well validated as critical regulators for the APC enzymes.We have found that the substrate competitive mechanism of inhibition is sensitive to the E2 activity driving APC catalyzed ubiquitination events. This chapter provides detailed protocols for multiple in vitro ubiquitination assays of increasing complexity and the use of pseudosubstrate inhibitors in these assays. These assays are instrumental in examining the use of E2 enzymes by the APC and the intimate relationship this has with pseudosubstrate inhibition.

View details for DOI 10.1007/978-1-60327-993-2_20

View details for PubMedID 19475398

Abstract

Named originally for their effects on peripheral end organs, the melanocortin system controls a diverse set of physiological processes through a series of five G-protein-coupled receptors and several sets of small peptide ligands. The central melanocortin system plays an essential role in homeostatic regulation of body weight, in which two alternative ligands, alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone and agouti-related protein, stimulate and inhibit receptor signaling in several key brain regions that ultimately affect food intake and energy expenditure. Much of what we know about the relationship between central melanocortin signaling and body weight regulation stems from genetic studies. Comparative genomic studies indicate that melanocortin receptors used for controlling pigmentation and body weight regulation existed more than 500 million years ago in primitive vertebrates, but that fine-grained control of melanocortin receptors through neuropeptides and endogenous antagonists developed more recently. Recent studies based on dog coat-color genetics revealed a new class of melanocortin ligands, the beta-defensins, which reveal the potential for cross talk between the melanocortin and the immune systems.

View details for DOI 10.1038/ijo.2008.234

View details for Web of Science ID 000262376700005

View details for PubMedID 19136986

Abstract

In vitro, the anaphase-promoting complex (APC) E3 ligase functions with E2 ubiquitin-conjugating enzymes of the E2-C and Ubc4/5 families to ubiquitinate substrates. However, only the use of the E2-C family, notably UbcH10, is genetically well validated. Here, we biochemically demonstrate preferential use of UbcH10 by the APC, specified by the E2 core domain. Importantly, an additional E2-E3 interaction mediated by the N-terminal extension of UbcH10 regulates APC activity. Mutating the highly conserved N terminus increases substrate ubiquitination and the number of substrate lysines targeted, allows ubiquitination of APC substrates lacking their destruction boxes, increases resistance to the APC inhibitors Emi1 and BubR1 in vitro, and bypasses the spindle checkpoint in vivo. Fusion of the UbcH10 N terminus to UbcH5 restricts ubiquitination activity but does not direct specific interactions with the APC. Thus, UbcH10 combines a specific E2-E3 interface and regulation via its N-terminal extension to limit APC activity for substrate selection and checkpoint control.

View details for DOI 10.1016/j.molcel.2008.07.014

View details for Web of Science ID 000258744100009

View details for PubMedID 18722180

Abstract

The transition of oocytes from meiosis I (MI) to meiosis II (MII) requires partial cyclin B degradation to allow MI exit without S phase entry. Rapid reaccumulation of cyclin B allows direct progression into MII, producing a cytostatic factor (CSF)-arrested egg. It has been reported that dampened translation of the anaphase-promoting complex (APC) inhibitor Emi2 at MI allows partial APC activation and MI exit. We have detected active Emi2 translation at MI and show that Emi2 levels in MI are mainly controlled by regulated degradation. Emi2 degradation in MI depends not on Ca(2+)/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII), but on Cdc2-mediated phosphorylation of multiple sites within Emi2. As in MII, this phosphorylation is antagonized by Mos-mediated recruitment of PP2A to Emi2. Higher Cdc2 kinase activity in MI than MII allows sufficient Emi2 phosphorylation to destabilize Emi2 in MI. At MI anaphase, APC-mediated degradation of cyclin B decreases Cdc2 activity, enabling Cdc2-mediated Emi2 phosphorylation to be successfully antagonized by Mos-mediated PP2A recruitment. These data suggest a model of APC autoinhibition mediated by stabilization of Emi2; Emi2 proteins accumulate at MI exit and inhibit APC activity sufficiently to prevent complete degradation of cyclin B, allowing MI exit while preventing interphase before MII entry.

View details for DOI 10.1091/mbc.E08-04-0417

View details for Web of Science ID 000259160400033

View details for PubMedID 18550795

View details for DOI 10.1038/nchembio0608-331

View details for Web of Science ID 000256068600004

View details for PubMedID 18488006

Abstract

In yeast, the protein phosphatase Cdc14 promotes chromosome segregation, mitotic exit, and cytokinesis by reversing M-phase phosphorylations catalyzed by Cdk1. A key feature of Cdc14 regulation is its sequestration within the nucleolus, which restricts its access to potential substrates for much of the cell cycle. Mammals also possess a nucleolar Cdc14 homolog, termed Cdc14B, but its roles during mitosis and cell division remain speculative. Here we analyze Cdc14B's subcellular dynamics during mitosis and rigorously test its functional contributions to cell division through homozygous disruption of the Cdc14B locus in human somatic cells. While Cdc14B is initially released from nucleoli at the start of mitosis, the phosphatase quickly redistributes onto segregating sister chromatids during anaphase. This relocalization is mainly driven by Cdk1 inactivation, as pharmacologic inhibition of Cdk1 in prometaphase cells redirects Cdc14B onto chromosomes. However, in sharp contrast to yeast cdc14 mutants, human Cdc14B(Delta/Delta) cells were viable and lacked defects in spindle assembly, anaphase progression, mitotic exit, and cytokinesis, and continued to segregate ribosomal DNA repeats with near-normal proficiency. Our findings reveal substantial divergence in mitotic regulation between yeast and mammalian cells, as the latter possess efficient mechanisms for completing late M-phase events in the absence of a nucleolar Cdc14-related phosphatase.

View details for Web of Science ID 000256102700012

View details for PubMedID 18418058

Abstract

Clear cell carcinoma is a clinically and pathologically distinct entity among surface epithelial ovarian neoplasms, recognized for its resistance to standard platinum-based chemotherapy at advanced stage disease and poor prognosis. Despite advances in our understanding of the biology of other surface epithelial ovarian neoplasms, very little is known about the molecular genetic mechanisms that are involved in clear cell tumorigenesis. Early mitotic inhibitor-1 (Emi1) protein is a key cell cycle regulator, that promotes S-phase and mitotic entry by inhibiting the anaphase promoting complex. In cell culture systems, overexpression of Emi1 leads to tetraploidy and genomic instability, especially in the absence of normal p53 function. We investigated Emi1 protein expression in ovarian neoplasms using a tissue microarray constructed from 339 primary ovarian surface epithelial (serous, endometrioid, clear cell, and mucinous) and peritoneal (serous) neoplasms, stromal and mesenchymal tumors, germ cell tumors, and normal ovarian tissue. Significant overexpression of Emi1 protein was present in 82% (27/33) clear cell carcinoma, including one borderline tumor in a diffuse, granular cytoplasmic and perinuclear staining pattern, independent of patient age, presence of ovarian and/or pelvic endometriosis, and FIGO stage. In contrast, only 10% (17/177) primary ovarian and primary peritoneal serous carcinomas, 0% (0/10) mucinous carcinomas, and 19% (6/32) endometrioid carcinomas exhibited significant Emi1 protein overexpression. Accumulation of Emi1 protein was not linked to Ki-67 labeling index, but was directly correlated with cyclin E and inversely correlated with ER in clear cell carcinoma (P<0.001). Emi1 protein expression was present in mixed endometrioid/clear cell tumors but absent in tumors with mixed serous/clear cell histology. These findings represent a potentially important insight into the molecular pathway underlying ovarian carcinogenesis and provide a possible cell cycle model for the development and progression of ovarian clear cell carcinoma.

View details for DOI 10.1038/modpathol.3801022

View details for Web of Science ID 000254288500011

View details for PubMedID 18204430

Abstract

Expression of the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C) inhibitor Emi1 is required for the accumulation of APC/C substrates crucial for DNA synthesis and mitotic entry. We show that in vivo Emi1 expression correlates with the proliferative status of the cellular compartment and that cells lacking Emi1 undergo cellular senescence. Emi1 depletion leads to strong decreases in E2F target mRNA and APC/C substrate protein abundances. However, cyclin E mRNA and cyclin E protein levels and associated kinase activities are increased. Cells lacking Emi1 undergo DNA damage, likely explained by replication stress upon deregulated cyclin E- and A-associated kinase activities. Inhibition of ATM kinase prevents induction of senescence, implying that senescence is a consequence of DNA damage. Surprisingly, no senescence or no extensive amount of senescence is evident upon depletion of the Emi1-stabilizing factor Evi5 or Pin1, respectively. Our data suggest that maintenance of a protein stabilization/mRNA expression positive-feedback circuit fueled by Emi1 is required for accurate cell cycle progression, maintenance of DNA integrity, and prevention of cellular senescence.

View details for DOI 10.1128/MCB.00908-07

View details for Web of Science ID 000250800900019

View details for PubMedID 17875940

Abstract

Before fertilization, vertebrate eggs are arrested in meiosis II by cytostatic factor (CSF), which holds the anaphase-promoting complex (APC) in an inactive state. It was recently reported that Mos, an integral component of CSF, acts in part by promoting the Rsk-mediated phosphorylation of the APC inhibitor Emi2/Erp1. We report here that Rsk phosphorylation of Emi2 promotes its interaction with the protein phosphatase PP2A. Emi2 residues adjacent to the Rsk phosphorylation site were important for PP2A binding. An Emi2 mutant that retained Rsk phosphorylation but lacked PP2A binding could not be modulated by Mos. PP2A bound to Emi2 acted on two distinct clusters of sites phosphorylated by Cdc2, one responsible for modulating its stability during CSF arrest and one that controls binding to the APC. These findings provide a molecular mechanism for Mos action in promoting CSF arrest and also define an unusual mechanism, whereby protein phosphorylation recruits a phosphatase for dephosphorylation of distinct sites phosphorylated by another kinase.

View details for DOI 10.1073/pnas.0707537104

View details for Web of Science ID 000250373400033

View details for PubMedID 17881560

Abstract

The gut epithelium self-renews every several days, providing an important innate defense system that limits bacterial colonization. Nevertheless, many bacterial pathogens, including Shigella, efficiently colonize the intestinal epithelium. Here, we show that the Shigella effector IpaB, when delivered into epithelial cells, causes cell-cycle arrest by targeting Mad2L2, an anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC) inhibitor. Cyclin B1 ubiquitination assays revealed that APC undergoes unscheduled activation due to IpaB interaction with the APC inhibitor Mad2L2. Synchronized HeLa cells infected with Shigella failed to accumulate Cyclin B1, Cdc20, and Plk1, causing cell-cycle arrest at the G2/M phase in an IpaB/Mad2L2-dependent manner. IpaB/Mad2L2-dependent cell-cycle arrest by Shigella infection was also demonstrated in rabbit intestinal crypt progenitors, and the IpaB-mediated arrest contributed to efficient colonization of the host cells. These results strongly indicate that Shigella employ special tactics to influence epithelial renewal in order to promote bacterial colonization of intestinal epithelium.

View details for DOI 10.1016/j.cell.2007.06.043

View details for Web of Science ID 000249319400013

View details for PubMedID 17719540

Abstract

Overexpression of cyclin E, an activator of cyclin-dependent kinase 2, has been linked to human cancer. In cell culture models, the forced expression of cyclin E leads to aneuploidy and polyploidy, which is consistent with a direct role of cyclin E overexpression in tumorigenesis. In this study, we show that the overexpression of cyclin E has a direct effect on progression through the latter stages of mitotic prometaphase before the complete alignment of chromosomes at the metaphase plate. In some cases, such cells fail to divide chromosomes, resulting in polyploidy. In others, cells proceed to anaphase without the complete alignment of chromosomes. These phenotypes can be explained by an ability of overexpressed cyclin E to inhibit residual anaphase-promoting complex (APC(Cdh1)) activity that persists as cells progress up to and through the early stages of mitosis, resulting in the abnormal accumulation of APC(Cdh1) substrates as cells enter mitosis. We further show that the accumulation of securin and cyclin B1 can account for the cyclin E-mediated mitotic phenotype.

View details for DOI 10.1083/jcb.200703202

View details for Web of Science ID 000248544500007

View details for PubMedID 17664332

Abstract

Cyclin-dependent kinase 1 (Cdk1) initiates mitosis and later activates the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C) to destroy cyclins. Kinetochore-derived checkpoint signaling delays APC/C-dependent cyclin B destruction, and checkpoint-independent mechanisms cooperate to limit APC/C activity when kinetochores lack checkpoint components in early mitosis. The APC/C and cyclin B localize to the spindle and poles, but the significance and regulation of these populations remain unclear. Here we describe a critical spindle pole-associated mechanism, called the END (Emi1/NuMA/dynein-dynactin) network, that spatially restricts APC/C activity in early mitosis. The APC/C inhibitor Emi1 binds the spindle-organizing NuMA/dynein-dynactin complex to anchor and inhibit the APC/C at spindle poles, and thereby limits destruction of spindle-associated cyclin B. Cyclin B/Cdk1 activity recruits the END network and establishes a positive feedback loop to stabilize spindle-associated cyclin B critical for spindle assembly. The organization of the APC/C on the spindle also provides a framework for understanding microtubule-dependent organization of protein destruction.

View details for DOI 10.1016/j.devcel.2007.04.017

View details for Web of Science ID 000247837800008

View details for PubMedID 17609108

Abstract

The fidelity of cell division is dependent on the accumulation and ordered destruction of critical protein regulators. By triggering the appropriately timed, ubiquitin-dependent proteolysis of the mitotic regulatory proteins securin, cyclin B, aurora A kinase, and polo-like kinase 1, the anaphase promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C) ubiquitin ligase plays an essential role in maintaining genomic stability. Misexpression of these APC/C substrates, individually, has been implicated in genomic instability and cancer. However, no comprehensive survey of the extent of their misregulation in tumors has been performed. Here, we analyzed more than 1600 benign and malignant tumors by immunohistochemical staining of tissue microarrays and found frequent overexpression of securin, polo-like kinase 1, aurora A, and Skp2 in malignant tumors. Positive and negative APC/C regulators, Cdh1 and Emi1, respectively, were also more strongly expressed in malignant versus benign tumors. Clustering and statistical analysis supports the finding that malignant tumors generally show broad misregulation of mitotic APC/C substrates not seen in benign tumors, suggesting that a "mitotic profile" in tumors may result from misregulation of the APC/C destruction pathway. This profile of misregulated mitotic APC/C substrates and regulators in malignant tumors suggests that analysis of this pathway may be diagnostically useful and represent a potentially important therapeutic target.

View details for DOI 10.2353/ajpath.2007.060767

View details for Web of Science ID 000246050400033

View details for PubMedID 17456782

Abstract

Vertebrate eggs arrest at metaphase of meiosis II due to an activity known as cytostatic factor (CSF). CSF antagonizes the ubiquitin ligase activity of the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C), preventing cyclin B destruction and meiotic exit until fertilization occurs. A puzzling feature of CSF arrest is that APC/C inhibition is leaky. Ongoing cyclin B synthesis is counterbalanced by a limited amount of APC/C-mediated cyclin B destruction; thus, cyclin B/Cdc2 activity remains at steady state. How the APC/C can be slightly active toward cyclin B, and yet restrained from ubiquitinating cyclin B altogether, is unknown. Emi2/XErp1 is the critical CSF component directly responsible for APC/C inhibition during CSF arrest. Fertilization triggers the Ca2+-dependent destruction of Emi2, releasing the APC/C to ubiquitinate the full pool of cyclin B and initiate completion of meiosis. Previously, we showed that a phosphatase maintains Emi2's APC/C-inhibitory activity in CSF-arrested Xenopus egg extracts. Here, we demonstrate that phosphatase inhibition permits Emi2 phosphorylation at thr-545 and -551, which inactivates Emi2. Furthermore, we provide evidence that adding excess cyclin B to CSF extracts stimulates Cdc2 phosphorylation of these same residues, antagonizing Emi2-APC/C association. Our findings suggest a model wherein the pool of Emi2 acts analogously to a rheostat by integrating Cdc2 and phosphatase activities to prevent cyclin B overaccumulation and Cdc2 hyperactivity during the indefinite period of time between arrival at metaphase II and eventual fertilization. Finally, we propose that inactivation of Emi2 by Cdc2 permits mitotic progression during early embryonic cleavage cycles.

View details for Web of Science ID 000245496500017

View details for PubMedID 17361104

Abstract

Cytostatic factor (CSF) arrests unfertilized vertebrate eggs in metaphase of meiosis II by inhibiting the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C) from mediating cyclin destruction. The APC/C inhibitor Emi2/XErp1 satisfies a number of historical criteria for the molecular identification of CSF, but the mechanism by which CSF is activated selectively in meiosis II is the remaining unexplained criterion. Here we provide an explanation by showing that Emi2 is expressed specifically in meiosis II through translational de-repression or "unmasking" of its mRNA. We find that Emi2 protein is undetectable in immature, G2/prophase-arrested Xenopus oocytes and accumulates approximately 90 minutes after germinal vesicle breakdown. The 3' untranslated region of Emi2 mRNA contains cytoplasmic polyadenylation elements that directly bind the CPEB protein and confer temporal regulation of Emi2 polyadenylation and translation. Our results demonstrate that cytoplasmic polyadenylation and translational unmasking of Emi2 directs meiosis II-specific CSF arrest.

View details for Web of Science ID 000245496500016

View details for PubMedID 17361107

Abstract

Vertebrate oocytes are arrested in metaphase II of meiosis prior to fertilization by cytostatic factor (CSF). CSF enforces a cell-cycle arrest by inhibiting the anaphase-promoting complex (APC), an E3 ubiquitin ligase that targets Cyclin B for degradation. Although Cyclin B synthesis is ongoing during CSF arrest, constant Cyclin B levels are maintained. To achieve this, oocytes allow continuous slow Cyclin B degradation, without eliminating the bulk of Cyclin B, which would induce release from CSF arrest. However, the mechanism that controls this continuous degradation is not understood.We report here the molecular details of a negative feedback loop wherein Cyclin B promotes its own destruction through Cdc2/Cyclin B-mediated phosphorylation and inhibition of the APC inhibitor Emi2. Emi2 bound to the core APC, and this binding was disrupted by Cdc2/Cyclin B, without affecting Emi2 protein stability. Cdc2-mediated phosphorylation of Emi2 was antagonized by PP2A, which could bind to Emi2 and promote Emi2-APC interactions.Constant Cyclin B levels are maintained during a CSF arrest through the regulation of Emi2 activity. A balance between Cdc2 and PP2A controls Emi2 phosphorylation, which in turn controls the ability of Emi2 to bind to and inhibit the APC. This balance allows proper maintenance of Cyclin B levels and Cdc2 kinase activity during CSF arrest.

View details for DOI 10.1016/j.cub.2006.12.045

View details for Web of Science ID 000244164700020

View details for PubMedID 17276914

Abstract

The Evi5 oncogene has recently been shown to regulate the stability and accumulation of critical G(1) cell cycle factors including Emi1, an inhibitor of the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome, and cyclin A. Sequence analysis of the amino terminus of Evi5 reveals a Tre-2, Bub2, Cdc16 domain, which has been shown to be a binding partner and GTPase-activating protein domain for the Rab family of small Ras-like GTPases. Here we describe the identification of Evi5 as a candidate binding protein for Rab11, a GTPase that regulates intracellular transport and has specific roles in endosome recycling and cytokinesis. By yeast two-hybrid analysis, immunoprecipitation, and Biacore analysis, we demonstrate that Evi5 binds Rab11a and Rab11b in a GTP-dependent manner. However, Evi5 displays no activation of Rab11 GTPase activity in vitro. Evi5 colocalizes with Rab11 in vivo, and overexpression of Rab11 perturbs the localization of Evi5, redistributing it into Rab11-positive recycling endosomes. Interestingly, in vitro binding studies show that Rab11 effector proteins including FIP3 compete with Evi5 for binding to Rab11, suggesting a partitioning between Rab11-Evi5 and Rab11 effector complexes. Indeed, ablation of Evi5 by RNA interference causes a mislocalization of FIP3 at the abscission site during cytokinesis. These data demonstrate that Evi5 is a Rab11 binding protein and that Evi5 may cooperate with Rab11 to coordinate vesicular trafficking, cytokinesis, and cell cycle control independent of GTPase-activating protein function.

View details for DOI 10.1073/pnas.0610500104

View details for Web of Science ID 000243849900024

View details for PubMedID 17229837

Abstract

Mammalian oocytes are arrested in prophase of the first meiotic division. Progression into the first meiotic division is driven by an increase in the activity of maturation-promoting factor (MPF). In mouse oocytes, we find that early mitotic inhibitor 1 (Emi1), an inhibitor of the anaphase-promoting complex (APC) that is responsible for cyclin B destruction and inactivation of MPF, is present at prophase I and undergoes Skp1-Cul1-F-box/betaTrCP-mediated destruction immediately after germinal vesicle breakdown (GVBD). Exogenous Emi1 or the inhibition of Emi1 destruction in prophase-arrested oocytes leads to a stabilization of cyclin B1-GFP that is sufficient to trigger GVBD. In contrast, the depletion of Emi1 using morpholino oligonucleotides increases cyclin B1-GFP destruction, resulting in an attenuation of MPF activation and a delay of entry into the first meiotic division. Finally, we show that Emi1-dependent effects on meiosis I require the presence of Cdh1. These observations reveal a novel mechanism for the control of entry into the first meiotic division: an Emi1-dependent inhibition of APC(Cdh1).

View details for DOI 10.1083/jcb.200607070

View details for Web of Science ID 000243581600008

View details for PubMedID 17190794

Abstract

During interkinesis, a metaphase II (MetII) spindle is built immediately after the completion of meiosis I. Oocytes then remain MetII arrested until fertilization. In mouse, we find that early mitotic inhibitor 2 (Emi2), which is an anaphase-promoting complex inhibitor, is involved in both the establishment and the maintenance of MetII arrest. In MetII oocytes, Emi2 needs to be degraded for oocytes to exit meiosis, and such degradation, as visualized by fluorescent protein tagging, occurred tens of minutes ahead of cyclin B1. Emi2 antisense morpholino knockdown during oocyte maturation did not affect polar body (PB) extrusion. However, in interkinesis the central spindle microtubules from meiosis I persisted for a short time, and a MetII spindle failed to assemble. The chromatin in the oocyte quickly decondensed and a nucleus formed. All of these effects were caused by the essential role of Emi2 in stabilizing cyclin B1 after the first PB extrusion because in Emi2 knockdown oocytes a MetII spindle was recovered by Emi2 rescue or by expression of nondegradable cyclin B1 after meiosis I.

View details for Web of Science ID 000240697100009

View details for PubMedID 16966421

View details for DOI 10.1038/442365a

View details for Web of Science ID 000239278900026

View details for PubMedID 16871201

Abstract

The anaphase promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C) is an E3 ubiquitin ligase that controls the cell cycle by directing the ubiquitin-dependent proteolysis of S-phase and mitosis promoting factors. Emi1 is an E2F transcriptional target that drives cell cycle progression from G1/S through early mitosis by inhibiting the APC/C's ubiquitin ligase activity, and thus facilitates accumulation of APC/C substrates. Using cell culture model systems, we found that Emi1 overexpression leads to proliferation, tetraploidy and genome instability of cells deficient for p53. We propose that loss of pRb repression of E2F-mediated transcription causing misregulation of Emi1 and APC/C substrates results in the generation of tetraploidy and proliferation of genomically unstable cells in the absence of normal p53 function. This represents a potentially important mechanism by which pRb and p53 dysfunction may contribute to tumorigenesis through the generation of genomic instability.

View details for Web of Science ID 000240697800017

View details for PubMedID 16861914

Abstract

Greatwall kinase is a conserved regulator of mitotic entry, and new work in Xenopus egg extracts (Yu et al., 2006) shows that Greatwall is required for the positive feedback loop that removes inhibitory tyrosine phosphate from the central mitotic regulatory kinase Cdc2.

View details for DOI 10.1016/j.molcel.2006.04.005

View details for Web of Science ID 000237150400005

View details for PubMedID 16630886

Abstract

Regulated protein destruction controls many key cellular processes with aberrant regulation increasingly found during carcinogenesis. Gli proteins mediate the transcriptional effects of the Sonic hedgehog pathway, which is implicated in up to 25% of human tumors. Here we show that Gli is rapidly destroyed by the proteasome and that mouse basal cell carcinoma induction correlates with Gli protein accumulation. We identify two independent destruction signals in Gli1, D(N) and D(C), and show that removal of these signals stabilizes Gli1 protein and rapidly accelerates tumor formation in transgenic animals. These data argue that control of Gli protein accumulation underlies tumorigenesis and suggest a new avenue for antitumor therapy.

View details for DOI 10.1101/gad.1380906

View details for Web of Science ID 000235267000002

View details for PubMedID 16421275

Abstract

The anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C) inhibitor Emi1 controls progression to S phase and mitosis by stabilizing key APC/C ubiquitination substrates, including cyclin A. Examining Emi1 binding proteins, we identified the Evi5 oncogene as a regulator of Emi1 accumulation. Evi5 antagonizes SCF(betaTrCP)-dependent Emi1 ubiquitination and destruction by binding to a site adjacent to Emi1's DSGxxS degron and blocking both degron phosphorylation by Polo-like kinases and subsequent betaTrCP binding. Thus, Evi5 functions as a stabilizing factor maintaining Emi1 levels in S/G2 phase. Evi5 protein accumulates in early G1 following Plk1 destruction and is degraded in a Plk1- and ubiquitin-dependent manner in early mitosis. Ablation of Evi5 induces precocious degradation of Emi1 by the Plk/SCF(betaTrCP) pathway, causing premature APC/C activation; cyclin destruction; cell-cycle arrest; centrosome overduplication; and, finally, mitotic catastrophe. We propose that the balance of Evi5 and Polo-like kinase activities determines the timely accumulation of Emi1 and cyclin, ensuring mitotic fidelity.

View details for DOI 10.1016/j.cell.2005.10.038

View details for Web of Science ID 000235068500024

View details for PubMedID 16439210

Abstract

In vertebrate meiosis, unfertilized eggs are arrested in metaphase II by cytostatic factor (CSF), which is required to maintain mitotic cyclin-dependent kinase activity. Fertilization triggers a transient increase in cytosolic free Ca(2+), which leads to CSF inactivation and ubiquitin-dependent cyclin destruction through the anaphase promoting complex or cyclosome (APC/C). The Ca(2+)/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) and the Polo-like kinase Plx1 are essential factors for Ca(2+)-induced meiotic exit, but the critical targets of these kinases were unknown. The APC/C inhibitor Emi2 or XErp1 has recently been characterized as a pivotal CSF component, required to maintain metaphase II arrest and rapidly destroyed in response to Ca(2+) signaling through phosphorylation by Plx1 and ubiquitination by the SCF(betaTrCP) complex. An important question is how the increase in free Ca(2+) targets Plx1 activity toward Emi2. Here, we demonstrate that CaMKII is required for Ca(2+)-induced Emi2 destruction, and that CaMKII functions as a "priming kinase," directly phosphorylating Emi2 at a specific motif to induce a strong interaction with the Polo Box domain of Plx1. We show that the strict requirement for CaMKII to phosphorylate Emi2 is a specific feature of CSF arrest, and we also use phosphatase inhibitors to demonstrate an additional mode of Emi2 inactivation independent of its destruction. We firmly establish the CSF component Emi2 as the first-known critical and direct target of CaMKII in CSF release, providing a detailed molecular mechanism explaining how CaMKII and Plx1 coordinately direct APC/C activation and meiotic exit upon fertilization.

View details for DOI 10.1073/pnas.0509549102

View details for Web of Science ID 000234727800021

View details for PubMedID 16407128

Abstract

Degradation of specific protein substrates by the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC) is critical for mitotic exit. We have identified the protein Xenopus nuclear factor 7 (Xnf7) as a novel APC inhibitor able to regulate the timing of exit from mitosis. Immunodepletion of Xnf7 from Xenopus laevis egg extracts accelerated the degradation of APC substrates cyclin B1, cyclin B2, and securin upon release from cytostatic factor arrest, whereas excess Xnf7 inhibited APC activity. Interestingly, Xnf7 exhibited intrinsic ubiquitin ligase activity, and this activity was required for APC inhibition. Unlike other reported APC inhibitors, Xnf7 did not associate with Cdc20, but rather bound directly to core subunits of the APC. Furthermore, Xnf7 was required for spindle assembly checkpoint function in egg extracts. These data suggest that Xnf7 is an APC inhibitor able to link spindle status to the APC through direct association with APC core components.

View details for DOI 10.1083/jcb.200411056

View details for Web of Science ID 000228327500006

View details for PubMedID 15824132

Abstract

Unfertilized vertebrate eggs are arrested in metaphase of meiosis II with high cyclin B/Cdc2 activity to prevent parthenogenesis. Until fertilization, exit from metaphase is blocked by an activity called cytostatic factor (CSF), which stabilizes cyclin B by inhibiting the anaphase-promoting complex (APC) ubiquitin ligase. The APC inhibitor early mitotic inhibitor 1 (Emi1) was recently found to be required for maintenance of CSF arrest. We show here that exogenous Emi1 is unstable in CSF-arrested Xenopus eggs and is destroyed by the SCF(betaTrCP) ubiquitin ligase, suggesting that endogenous Emi1, an apparent 44-kDa protein, requires a stabilizing factor. However, anti-Emi1 antibodies crossreact with native Emi2/Erp1/FBXO43, a homolog of Emi1 and conserved APC inhibitor. Emi2 is stable in CSF-arrested eggs, is sufficient to prevent CSF release, and is rapidly degraded in a Polo-like kinase 1-dependent manner in response to calcium-mediated egg activation. These results identify Emi2 as a candidate CSF maintenance protein.

View details for DOI 10.1073/pnas.0501108102

View details for Web of Science ID 000227854800019

View details for PubMedID 15753281

Abstract

Xenopus oocytes are arrested at the G2/prophase boundary of meiosis I and enter meiosis in response to progesterone. A hallmark of meiosis is the absence of DNA replication between the successive cell division phases meiosis I (MI) and meiosis II (MII). After the MI-MII transition, Xenopus eggs are locked in metaphase II by the cytostatic factor (CSF) arrest to prevent parthenogenesis. Early Mitotic Inhibitor 1 (Emi1) maintains CSF arrest by inhibiting the ability of the Anaphase Promoting Complex (APC) to direct the destruction of cyclin B. To investigate whether Emi1 has an earlier role in meiosis, we injected Xenopus oocytes with neutralizing antibodies against Emi1 at G2/prophase and during the MI-MII transition. Progesterone-treated G2/prophase oocytes injected with anti-Emi1 antibody fail to activate Maturation Promoting Factor (MPF), a complex of cdc2/cyclin B, and the MAPK pathway, and do not undergo germinal vesicle breakdown (GVBD). Injection of purified Delta90 cyclin B protein or blocking anti-Emi1 antibody with purified Emi1 protein rescues these meiotic processes in Emi1-neutralized oocytes. Acute inhibition of Emi1 in progesterone treated oocytes immediately after GVBD causes rapid loss of cdc2 activity with simultaneous loss of cyclin B levels and inactivation of the MAPK pathway. These oocytes decondense their chromosomes and enter a DNA replication phase instead of progressing to MII. Prior ablation of Cdc20, addition of methyl-ubiquitin, or addition of nondestructible Delta90 cyclin B rescues the MI-MII transition in Emi1-inhibited oocytes.

View details for Web of Science ID 000229538500030

View details for PubMedID 15701974

Abstract

The turnover of key proteins that mediate development, cellular proliferation, and a host of essential biological processes is controlled by the ubiquitin proteasome system (UPS). In several well-studied examples, notably in the cell cycle, regulatory proteins that control ubiquitin-dependent destruction are themselves substrates of the UPS, creating a multilayered system to ensure precise and dynamic control of protein stability. UPS regulators controlled at the level of protein stability--including the F-box protein Skp2 and the VHL protein (substrate adapter proteins for multicomponent E3 ubiquitin ligases)-- seem to be misregulated in tumors. In these cases, especially, measuring levels of critical regulatory and target proteins will often present a more biologically meaningful picture than examining relative mRNA levels, which do not always reflect corresponding protein levels. Tissue microarrays (TMAs) allow simultaneous screening of large numbers of tumors for expression of specific proteins by immunohistochemical staining of a single microscope slide prepared from a TMA paraffin block. Replicate slides prepared from the same block can be immunostained for multiple proteins functioning in a related pathway, and a semiquantitative protein expression profile for a given subset of UPS pathway components, or other subsets of proteins of interest, can be assembled. Protein expression profiles of individual tumors or tissue types can be compared and visualized by hierarchical clustering methods. These expression profiles may be used as screening tools to investigate the relative abundance of components of a biochemical pathway in tumors or other tissues. TMAs have an exciting future as tools for basic research, diagnostic pathology, and drug targeting. In this article, we provide an introduction to the use of TMAs to study the expression of UPS component proteins and substrates in tumors by immunohistochemistry.

View details for DOI 10.1016/S0076-6879(05)99023-X

View details for Web of Science ID 000233597300023

View details for PubMedID 16338367

Abstract

Progression through mitosis requires activation of cyclin B/Cdk1 and its downstream targets, including Polo-like kinase and the anaphase-promoting complex (APC), the ubiquitin ligase directing degradation of cyclins A and B. Recent evidence shows that APC activation requires destruction of the APC inhibitor Emi1. In prophase, phosphorylation of Emi1 generates a D-pS-G-X-X-pS degron to recruit the SCF(betaTrCP) ubiquitin ligase, causing Emi1 destruction and allowing progression beyond prometaphase, but the kinases directing this phosphorylation remain undefined. We show here that the polo-like kinase Plk1 is strictly required for Emi1 destruction and that overexpression of Plk1 is sufficient to trigger Emi1 destruction. Plk1 stimulates Emi1 phosphorylation, betaTrCP binding, and ubiquitination in vitro and cyclin B/Cdk1 enhances these effects. Plk1 binds to Emi1 in mitosis and the two proteins colocalize on the mitotic spindle poles, suggesting that Plk1 may spatially control Emi1 destruction. These data support the hypothesis that Plk1 activates the APC by directing the SCF-dependent destruction of Emi1 in prophase.

View details for DOI 10.1091/mbc.E04-07-0598

View details for Web of Science ID 000225372800037

View details for PubMedID 15469984

Abstract

The family of cyclin-dependent kinases (Cdks) lies at the core of the machinery that drives the cell division cycle. Studies in cultured mammalian cells have provided insight into the cellular functions of many Cdks. Recent Cdk and cyclin knockouts in the mouse show that the functions of G1 cell cycle regulatory genes are often essential only in specific cell types, pointing to our limited understanding of tissue-specific expression, redundancy, and compensating mechanisms in the Cdk network.

View details for Web of Science ID 000223730300004

View details for PubMedID 15339658

Abstract

The dual specificity phosphatase Cdc14 has been shown to be a critical regulator of late mitotic events in several eukaryotes, including S. cerevisiae, S. pombe. C. elegans and H. sapiens. However, Cdc14 homologs have clearly evolved to regulate distinct cellular processes and to respond to regulatory signals important for these processes. The human paralogs hCdc14A and B are the only vertebrate Cdc14 homologues studied to date, but their functions are not well understood. Therefore, it is of great interest to examine the function Cdc14 homologs in other vertebrate species.We identified two open reading frames from Xenopus laevis closely related to human Cdc14A, called XCdc14alpha and XCdc14beta, although no obvious paralog of the hCdc14B was found. To begin a functional characterization of Xcdc14alpha and XCdc14beta, we raised polyclonal antibodies against a conserved region. These antibodies stained both the nucleolus and centrosome in interphase Xenopus tissue culture cells, and the mitotic centrosomes. GFP-tagged version of XCdc14alpha localized to the nucleulus and GFP-XCdc14beta localized to the centrosome, although not exclusively. XCdc14alpha was also both meiotically and mitotically phosphorylated. Injection of antibodies raised against a conserved region of XCdc14/beta into Xenopus embryos at the two-cell stage blocked division of the injected blastomeres, suggesting that activities of XCdc14alpha/beta are required for normal cell division.These results provide evidence that XCdc14alpha/beta are required for normal cellular division and are regulated by at least two mechanisms, subcellular localization and possibly phosphorylation. Due to the high sequence conservation between Xcdc14alpha and hCdc14A, it seems likely that both mechanisms will contribute to regulation of Cdc14 homologs in vertebrates.

View details for DOI 10.1186/1471-2121-5-27

View details for Web of Science ID 000222850900001

View details for PubMedID 15251038

Abstract

A recent study shows that the RASSF1A tumor suppressor functions as a regulator of the ordered proteolytic steps that organize mitosis. By controlling the stability of microtubules and the activity of the anaphase-promoting complex (APC), RASSF1A might provide a crucial link between mechanisms of tumor suppression and mitotic cell division. Furthermore, another recent study shows that protein kinase A, which is a key growth regulator, inhibits the APC during mitosis in yeast.

View details for DOI 10.1016/j.tcb.2004.05.005

View details for Web of Science ID 000223010200001

View details for PubMedID 15246424

View details for DOI 10.1038/ncb1003-864

View details for Web of Science ID 000185647400010

View details for PubMedID 14523400

Abstract

Progression through mitosis occurs because cyclin B/Cdc2 activation induces the anaphase promoting complex (APC) to cause cyclin B destruction and mitotic exit. To ensure that cyclin B/Cdc2 does not prematurely activate the APC in early mitosis, there must be a mechanism delaying APC activation. Emi1 is a protein capable of inhibiting the APC in S and G2. We show here that Emi1 is phosphorylated by Cdc2, and on a DSGxxS consensus site, is subsequently recognized by the SCF(betaTrCP/Slimb) ubiquitin ligase and destroyed, thus providing a delay for APC activation. Failure of betaTrCP-dependent Emi1 destruction stabilizes APC substrates and results in mitotic catastrophe including centrosome overduplication, potentially explaining mitotic deficiencies in Drosophila Slimb/betaTrCP mutants. We hypothesize that Emi1 destruction relieves a late prophase checkpoint for APC activation.

View details for Web of Science ID 000183383100007

View details for PubMedID 12791267

Abstract

SCF ubiquitin ligases, composed of three major subunits, Skp1, Cul1, and one of many F box proteins (Fbps), control the proteolysis of important cellular regulators. We have inactivated the gene encoding the Fbp beta-Trcp1 in mice. beta-Trcp1(-/-) males show reduced fertility correlating with an accumulation of methaphase I spermatocytes. beta-Trcp1(-/-) MEFs display a lengthened mitosis, centrosome overduplication, multipolar metaphase spindles, and misaligned chromosomes. Furthermore, cyclin A, cyclin B, and Emi1, an inhibitor of the anaphase promoting complex, are stabilized in mitotic beta-Trcp1(-/-) MEFs. Indeed, we demonstrate that Emi1 is a bona fide substrate of beta-Trcp1. In contrast, stabilization of beta-catenin and IkappaBalpha, two previously reported beta-Trcp1 substrates, does not occur in the absence of beta-Trcp1 and instead requires the additional silencing of beta-Trcp2 by siRNA. Thus, beta-Trcp1 regulates the timely order of meiotic and mitotic events.

View details for Web of Science ID 000183383100006

View details for PubMedID 12791266

Abstract

mahoganoid is a mouse coat-color mutation whose pigmentary phenotype and genetic interactions resemble those of Attractin (Atrn). Atrn mutations also cause spongiform neurodegeneration. Here, we show that a null mutation for mahoganoid causes a similar age-dependent neuropathology that includes many features of prion diseases but without accumulation of protease-resistant prion protein. The gene mutated in mahoganoid encodes a RING-containing protein with E3 ubiquitin ligase activity in vitro. Similarities in phenotype, expression, and genetic interactions suggest that mahoganoid and Atrn genes are part of a conserved pathway for regulated protein turnover whose function is essential for neuronal viability.

View details for Web of Science ID 000180687700048

View details for PubMedID 12560552

Abstract

Substrate binding by the SCFCdc4 ubiquitin ligase is regulated by phosphorylation. In this issue of Cell, Orlicky et al. describe the crystal structure of the Cdc4 subunit bound to a high-affinity substrate phosphopeptide. This structure provides insights into the binding interaction and how a precise mechanism involving multiple regulatory phosphorylations may be mediated by a single binding site.

View details for Web of Science ID 000181191600002

View details for PubMedID 12553901

Abstract

Switching from eumelanin to pheomelanin synthesis during hair growth is accomplished by transient synthesis of Agouti protein, an inverse agonist for the melanocortin-1 receptor (Mc1r). The coat color mutations mahogany and mahoganoid prevent hair follicle melanocytes from responding to Agouti protein. The gene mutated in mahogany, which is also known as Attractin (Atrn), encodes a type I transmembrane protein that functions as an accessory receptor for Agouti protein. We have recently determined that the gene mutated in mahoganoid, which is also known as Mahogunin (Mgrn1), encodes an E3 ubiquitin ligase. Like Attractin, Mahogunin is conserved in invertebrate genomes, and its absence causes a pleiotropic phenotype that includes spongiform neurodegeneration.

View details for Web of Science ID 000184303800037

View details for PubMedID 12851328

Abstract

We have identified a family of RING finger proteins that are orthologous to Drosophila Goliath (G1, Gol). One of the members, GREUL1 (Goliath Related E3 Ubiquitin Ligase 1), can convert Xenopus ectoderm into XAG-1- and Otx2-expressing cells in the absence of both neural tissue and muscle. This activity, combined with the finding that XGREUL1 is expressed within the cement gland, suggests a role for GREUL1 in the generation of anterior ectoderm. Although GREUL1 is not a direct inducer of neural tissue, it can activate the formation of ectopic neural cells within the epidermis of intact embryos. This suggests that GREUL1 can sensitize ectoderm to neuralizing signals. In this paper, we provide evidence that GREUL1 is an E3 ubiquitin ligase. Using a biochemical assay, we show that GREUL1 catalyzes the addition of polyubiquitin chains. These events are mediated by the RING domain since a mutation in two of the cysteines abolishes ligase activity. Mutation of these cysteines also compromises GREUL1's ability to induce cement gland. Thus, GREUL1's RING domain is necessary for both the ubiquitination of substrates and for the conversion of ectoderm to an anterior fate.

View details for DOI 10.1006/dbio.2002.0814

View details for Web of Science ID 000179377900015

View details for PubMedID 12435366

View details for Web of Science ID 000177840500010

View details for PubMedID 12214251

Abstract

In budding yeast, the Cdc14p phosphatase activates mitotic exit by dephosphorylation of specific cyclin-dependent kinase (Cdk) substrates and seems to be regulated by sequestration in the nucleolus until its release in mitosis. Herein, we have analyzed the two human homologs of Cdc14p, hCdc14A and hCdc14B. We demonstrate that the human Cdc14A phosphatase is selective for Cdk substrates in vitro and that although the protein abundance and intrinsic phosphatase activity of hCdc14A and B vary modestly during the cell cycle, their localization is cell cycle regulated. hCdc14A dynamically localizes to interphase but not mitotic centrosomes, and hCdc14B localizes to the interphase nucleolus. These distinct patterns of localization suggest that each isoform of human Cdc14 likely regulates separate cell cycle events. In addition, hCdc14A overexpression induces the loss of the pericentriolar markers pericentrin and gamma-tubulin from centrosomes. Overproduction of hCdc14A also causes mitotic spindle and chromosome segregation defects, defective karyokinesis, and a failure to complete cytokinesis. Thus, the hCdc14A phosphatase appears to play a role in the regulation of the centrosome cycle, mitosis, and cytokinesis, thereby influencing chromosome partitioning and genomic stability in human cells.

View details for DOI 10.1091/mbc.01-11-0535

View details for Web of Science ID 000177192600009

View details for PubMedID 12134069

Abstract

The SCF E3 ubiquitin ligases select specific proteins for ubiquitination (and typically destruction) by coupling variable adaptor (F box) proteins that bind protein substrates to a conserved catalytic engine containing a cullin, Cul1, and the Rbx1/Roc1 RING finger protein. A new crystal structure of the SCF(Skp2) ubiquitin ligase shows the molecular organization of this complex and raises important questions as to how substrate ubiquitination is accomplished.

View details for Web of Science ID 000175967100002

View details for PubMedID 12049727

Abstract

Emi1 promotes mitotic entry in Xenopus laevis embryos by inhibiting the APC(Cdc20) ubiquitination complex to allow accumulation of cyclin B. We show here that human Emi1 (hEmi1) functions to promote cyclin A accumulation and S phase entry in somatic cells by inhibiting the APC(Cdh1) complex. At the G1-S transition, hEmi1 is transcriptionally induced by the E2F transcription factor, much like cyclin A. hEmi1 overexpression accelerates S phase entry and can override a G1 block caused by overexpression of Cdh1 or the E2F-inhibitor p105 retinoblastoma protein (pRb). Depleting cells of hEmi1 through RNA interference prevents accumulation of cyclin A and inhibits S phase entry. These data suggest that E2F can activate both transcription of cyclin A and the hEmi1-dependent stabilization of APC(Cdh1) targets, such as cyclin A, to promote S phase entry.

View details for DOI 10.1038/ncb785

View details for Web of Science ID 000175325100017

View details for PubMedID 11988738

Abstract

Vertebrate eggs are arrested at metaphase of meiosis II with stable cyclin B and high cyclin B/Cdc2 kinase activity. The ability of the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC), an E3 ubiquitin ligase, to trigger cyclin B destruction and metaphase exit is blocked in eggs by the activity of cytostatic factor (CSF) (reviewed in ref. 1). CSF was defined as an activity in mature oocytes that caused mitotic arrest when injected into dividing embryos. Fertilization causes a transient increase in cytoplasmic calcium concentration leading to CSF inactivation, APC activation, cyclin B destruction and mitotic exit. The APC activator Cdc20 is required for APC activation after fertilization. We show here that the APC(cdc20) inhibitor Emi1 (ref. 6) is necessary and sufficient to inhibit the APC and to prevent mitotic exit in CSF-arrested eggs. CSF extracts immunodepleted of Emi1 degrade cyclin B, and exit from mitosis prematurely in the absence of calcium. Addition of Emi1 to these Emi1-depleted extracts blocks premature inactivation of the CSF-arrested state. Emi1 is required to arrest unfertilized eggs at metaphase of meiosis II and seems to be the long-sought mediator of CSF activity.

View details for Web of Science ID 000175163800052

View details for PubMedID 11976684

Abstract

We show that human Cdc14A phosphatase interacts with interphase centrosomes, and that this interaction is independent of microtubules and Cdc14A phosphatase activity, but requires active nuclear export. Disrupting the nuclear export signal (NES) led to Cdc14A being localized in nucleoli, which in unperturbed cells selectively contain Cdc14B (ref. 1). Conditional overproduction of Cdc14A, but not its phosphatase-dead or NES-deficient mutants, or Cdc14B, resulted in premature centrosome splitting and formation of supernumerary mitotic spindles. In contrast, downregulation of endogenous Cdc14A by short inhibitory RNA duplexes (siRNA) induced mitotic defects including impaired centrosome separation and failure to undergo productive cytokinesis. Consequently, both overexpression and downregulation of Cdc14A caused aberrant chromosome partitioning into daughter cells. These results indicate that Cdc14A is a physiological regulator of the centrosome duplication cycle, which, when disrupted, can lead to genomic instability in mammalian cells.

View details for DOI 10.1038/ncb777

View details for Web of Science ID 000174994000021

View details for PubMedID 11901424

Abstract

The anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC) ubiquitin ligase is activated by Cdc20 and Cdh1 and inhibited by Mad2 and the spindle assembly checkpoint complex, Mad2B, and the early mitotic inhibitor Emi1. Mad2 inhibits APC(Cdc20), whereas Mad2B preferentially inhibits APC(Cdh1). We have examined the mechanism of APC inhibition by Emi1 and find that unlike Mad2 proteins, Emi1 binds and inhibits both APC(Cdh1) and APC(Cdc20). Also unlike Mad2, Emi1 stabilizes cyclin A in the embryo and requires zinc for its APC inhibitory activity. We find that Emi1 binds the substrate-binding region of Cdc20 and prevents substrate binding to the APC, illustrating a novel mechanism of APC inhibition.

View details for Web of Science ID 000172879200006

View details for PubMedID 11751633

View details for Web of Science ID 000172598800001

View details for PubMedID 11731472

Abstract

To ensure proper timing of the G1-S transition in the cell cycle, the cyclin E-Cdk2 complex, which is responsible for the initiation of DNA replication, is restrained by the p21(Cip1)/p27(Kip1)/p57(Kip2) family of CDK (cyclin-dependent kinase) inhibitors in humans and by the related p27(Xic1) protein in Xenopus. Activation of cyclin E-Cdk2 is linked to the ubiquitination of human p27(Kip1) or Xenopus p27(Xic1) by SCF (for Skp1-Cullin-F-box protein) ubiquitin ligases. For human p27(Kip1), ubiquitination requires direct phosphorylation by cyclin E-Cdk2. We show here that Xic1 ubiquitination does not require phosphorylation by cyclin E-Cdk2, but it does require nuclear accumulation of the Xic1-cyclin E-Cdk2 complex and recruitment of this complex to chromatin by the origin-recognition complex together with Cdc6 replication preinitiation factors; it also requires an activation step necessitating cyclin E-Cdk2-kinase and SCF ubiquitin-ligase activity, and additional factors associated with mini-chromosome maintenance proteins, including the inactivation of geminin. Components of the SCF ubiquitin-ligase complex, including Skp1 and Cul1, are also recruited to chromatin through cyclin E-Cdk2 and the preinitiation complex. Thus, activation of the cyclin E-Cdk2 kinase and ubiquitin-dependent destruction of its inhibitor are spatially constrained to the site of a properly assembled preinitiation complex.

View details for Web of Science ID 000170393200016

View details for PubMedID 11483956

Abstract

We have discovered an early mitotic inhibitor, Emi1, which regulates mitosis by inhibiting the anaphase promoting complex/cyclosome (APC). Emi1 is a conserved F box protein containing a zinc binding region essential for APC inhibition. Emi1 accumulates before mitosis and is ubiquitylated and destroyed in mitosis, independent of the APC. Emi1 immunodepletion from cycling Xenopus extracts strongly delays cyclin B accumulation and mitotic entry, whereas nondestructible Emi1 stabilizes APC substrates and causes a mitotic block. Emi1 binds the APC activator Cdc20, and Cdc20 can rescue an Emi1-induced block to cyclin B destruction. Our results suggest that Emi1 regulates progression through early mitosis by preventing premature APC activation, and may help explain the well-known delay between cyclin B/Cdc2 activation and cyclin B destruction.

View details for Web of Science ID 000169123200011

View details for PubMedID 11389834

Abstract

Using an in vitro chromatin assembly assay in Xenopus egg extract, we show that cyclin E binds specifically and saturably to chromatin in three phases. In the first phase, the origin recognition complex and Cdc6 prereplication proteins, but not the minichromosome maintenance complex, are necessary and biochemically sufficient for ATP-dependent binding of cyclin E--Cdk2 to DNA. We find that cyclin E binds the NH(2)-terminal region of Cdc6 containing Cy--Arg-X-Leu (RXL) motifs. Cyclin E proteins with mutated substrate selection (Met-Arg-Ala-Ile-Leu; MRAIL) motifs fail to bind Cdc6, fail to compete with endogenous cyclin E--Cdk2 for chromatin binding, and fail to rescue replication in cyclin E--depleted extracts. Cdc6 proteins with mutations in the three consensus RXL motifs are quantitatively deficient for cyclin E binding and for rescuing replication in Cdc6-depleted extracts. Thus, the cyclin E--Cdc6 interaction that localizes the Cdk2 complex to chromatin is important for DNA replication. During the second phase, cyclin E--Cdk2 accumulates on chromatin, dependent on polymerase activity. In the third phase, cyclin E is phosphorylated, and the cyclin E--Cdk2 complex is displaced from chromatin in mitosis. In vitro, mitogen-activated protein kinase and especially cyclin B--Cdc2, but not the polo-like kinase 1, remove cyclin E--Cdk2 from chromatin. Rebinding of hyperphosphorylated cyclin E--Cdk2 to interphase chromatin requires dephosphorylation, and the Cdk kinase-directed Cdc14 phosphatase is sufficient for this dephosphorylation in vitro. These three phases of cyclin E association with chromatin may facilitate the diverse activities of cyclin E--Cdk2 in initiating replication, blocking rereplication, and allowing resetting of origins after mitosis.

View details for Web of Science ID 000167715600014

View details for PubMedID 11257126

Abstract

Recently, many new examples of E3 ubiquitin ligases or E3 enzymes have been found to regulate a host of cellular processes. These E3 enzymes direct the formation of multiubiquitin chains on specific protein substrates, and - typically - the subsequent destruction of those proteins. We discuss how the modular architecture of E3 enzymes connects one of two distinct classes of catalytic domains to a wide range of substrate-binding domains. In one catalytic class, a HECT domain transfers ubiquitin directly to substrate bound to a non-catalytic domain. Members of the other catalytic class, found in the SCF, VBC and APC complexes, use a RING finger domain to facilitate ubiquitylation. The separable substrate-recognition domains of E3 enzymes provides a flexible means of linking a conserved ubiquitylation function to potentially thousands of ubiquitylated substrates in eukaryotic cells.

View details for Web of Science ID 000089588600006

View details for PubMedID 10998601

Abstract

The action of cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs) is regulated by phosphorylation, cyclin levels, the abundance of CDK inhibitors, and, as recently has been shown for cyclin B/cdc2, their localization. It is unclear how localization regulates the action of cyclin E/Cdk2 and its inhibitors. Here, we show that the closest known Xenopus laevis homolog of mammalian Cdk2 inhibitors p27(Kip1) and p21(CIP1), Xic1, is concentrated, ubiquitinated, and destroyed in the nucleus. Furthermore, Xic1 destruction requires nuclear import, but not nuclear export, and requires the formation of a transport-competent nuclear envelope, but not interactions between the lamina and chromatin. We show that (i) cyclin E/Cdk2 and Xic1 are transported into the nucleus as a complex and that Xic1 destruction requires the activity of cyclin E, (ii) that phosphorylation of Xic1 by cyclin E/Cdk2 bypasses the requirement for nuclear formation, and (iii) that the phosphorylation of Xic1 by cyclin E/Cdk2 is concentration dependent and likely realized through second-order interactions between stable cyclin E/Cdk2/Xic1 ternary complexes. Based on these results we propose a model wherein nuclear accumulation of the cyclin E/Cdk2/Xic1 complex triggers a concentration-dependent switch that promotes the phosphorylation of Xic1 and, consequently, its ubiquitination and destruction, thus allowing subsequent activation of cyclin E/Cdk2.

View details for Web of Science ID 000088048400027

View details for PubMedID 10884410

View details for Web of Science ID 000083289200005

View details for PubMedID 10531041

Abstract

In fission yeast, overexpression of the replication initiator protein Cdc18p induces re-replication, a phenotype characterized by continuous DNA synthesis in the absence of cell division. In contrast, overexpression of Cdc6p, the budding yeast homolog of Cdc18p, does not cause re-replication in S. cerevisiae. However, we have found that Cdc6p has the ability to induce rereplication in fission yeast. Cdc6p cannot functionally replace Cdc18p, but instead interferes with the proteolysis of both Cdc18p and Rum1p, the inhibitor of the protein kinase Cdc2p. This activity of Cdc6p is entirely contained within a short N-terminal peptide, which forms a tight complex with Cdc2p and the F-box/WD-repeat protein Sud1p/Pop2p, a component of the SCF(Pop) ubiquitin ligase in fission yeast. These interactions are mediated by two distinct regions within the N-terminal region of Cdc6p and depend on the integrity of its Cdc2p phosphorylation sites. The data suggest that disruption of re-replication control by overexpression of Cdc6p in fission yeast is a consequence of sequestration of Cdc2p and Pop2p, two factors involved in the negative regulation of Rum1p, Cdc18p and potentially other replication proteins.

View details for Web of Science ID 000083839000010

View details for PubMedID 10589835

Abstract

Centrosomes organize the mitotic spindle to ensure accurate segregation of the chromosomes in mitosis. The mechanism that ensures accurate duplication and separation of the centrosomes underlies the fidelity of chromosome segregation, but remains unknown. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, entry into S phase and separation of spindle pole bodies each require CDC4 and CDC34, which encode components of an SCF (Skp1-cullin-F-box) ubiquitin ligase, but a direct (SCF) connection to the spindle pole body is unknown. Using immunofluorescence microscopy, we show that in mammalian cells the Skp1 protein and the cullin Cul1 are localized to interphase and mitotic centrosomes and to the cytoplasm and nucleus. Deconvolution and immunoelectron microscopy suggest that Skp1 forms an extended pericentriolar structure that may function to organize the centrosome. Purified centrosomes also contain Skp1, and Cul1 modified by the ubiquitin-like molecule NEDD8, suggesting a role for NEDD8 in targeting. Using an in vitro assay for centriole separation in Xenopus extracts, antibodies to Skp1 or Cul1 block separation. Proteasome inhibitors block both centriole separation in vitro and centrosome duplication in Xenopus embryos. We identify candidate centrosomal F-box proteins, suggesting that distinct SCF complexes may direct proteolysis of factors mediating multiple steps in the centrosome cycle.

View details for Web of Science ID 000082647200006

View details for PubMedID 10485847

Abstract

Ubiquitin-dependent proteolysis plays an important role in cell-cycle control [1] [2]. In budding yeast, the protein Skp1p, the cullin-family member Cdc53p, and the F-box/WD-repeat protein Cdc4p form the SCFCdc4p ubiquitin ligase complex, which targets the cyclin-dependent kinase (Cdk) inhibitor Sic1p for proteolysis [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]. Sic1p is recruited to the SCFCdc4p complex by binding to the WD-repeat region of Cdc4p [5] [6], while Skp1p binds to the F-box of Cdc4p [9]. In fission yeast, two distinct Cdc4p-related proteins, Pop1p/Ste16p [10] [11] and the recently identified Sud1p/Pop2p [12], regulate the stability of the replication initiator Cdc18p and the Cdk inhibitor Rum1p. We show here that, despite their structural and functional similarities, the pop1 and pop2 genes fail to complement each other's deletion phenotypes, indicating that they perform non-redundant, but potentially interdependent, functions in proteolysis. Consistent with this hypothesis, Pop1p and Pop2p formed heterooligomeric complexes when overexpressed, and binding of Cdc18p to Pop2p was dependent on Pop1p. The Pop1p-Pop2p interaction was mediated by the amino-terminal domain of Pop2p which, when fused to full-length Pop1p, rescued the phenotype of a Deltapop1Deltapop2 double mutant. Thus, close physical proximity of two distinct F-box/WD-repeat proteins directs proteolysis mediated by the SCFPop ubiquitin ligase complex.

View details for Web of Science ID 000079732800019

View details for PubMedID 10209119

Abstract

Centrosomes nucleate microtubules and duplicate once per cell cycle. This duplication and subsequent segregation in mitosis results in maintenance of the one centrosome/cell ratio. Centrosome duplication occurs during the G1/S transition in somatic cells and must be coupled to the events of the nuclear cell cycle; failure to coordinate duplication and mitosis results in abnormal numbers of centrosomes and aberrant mitoses. Using both in vivo and in vitro assays, we show that centrosome duplication in Xenopus laevis embryos requires cyclin/cdk2 kinase activity. Injection of the cdk (cyclin-dependent kinase) inhibitor p21 into one blastomere of a dividing embryo blocks centrosome duplication in that blastomere; the related cdk inhibitor p27 has a similar effect. An in vitro system using Xenopus extracts carries out separation of the paired centrioles within the centrosome. This centriole separation activity is dependent on cyclin/cdk2 activity; depletion of either cdk2 or of the two activating cyclins, cyclin A and cyclin E, eliminates centriole separation activity. In addition, centriole separation is inhibited by the mitotic state, suggesting a mechanism of linking the cell cycle to periodic duplication of the centrosome.

View details for Web of Science ID 000079224500048

View details for PubMedID 10077594

Abstract

The anaphase-promoting complex (APC) or cyclosome directs the ubiquitination and destruction of proteins that control specific steps in mitosis. Recent studies show that APC activity requires WD40 domain proteins, and that one of these proteins is part of the checkpoint control that ensures accurate chromosome segregation.

View details for Web of Science ID 000075862000007

View details for PubMedID 9740795

Abstract

A newly discovered family of proteins homologous to yeast Cdc53, called cullins, may play a key role in the targeting of cell-cycle regulators, such as cyclins, for destruction by ubiquitin-dependent proteolysis.

View details for Web of Science ID A1996VN63500007

View details for PubMedID 8939566

Abstract

c-Abl is a non-receptor protein-tyrosine kinase lacking a clear physiological role. A clue to its normal function is suggested by overexpression of Abl in fibroblasts, which leads to inhibition of cell growth. This effect requires tyrosine kinase activity and the Abl C-terminus. c-Abl is localized to the cell nucleus, where it can bind DNA, and interacts with the retinoblastoma protein, a potential mediator of the growth-inhibitory effect. Nuclear localization of Abl can be directed by a pentalysine nuclear localization signal in the Abl C-terminus. Here, we have identified two additional basic motifs in the Abl C-terminus, either of which can function independently of the pentalysine signal to localize Abl to the nucleus. Using a quantitative transfection assay, we show that both c-Abl and transforming Abl proteins inhibit entry into S phase and this effect is absolutely dependent on nuclear localization. Further, we demonstrate that the Abl cytostatic effect requires both the Rb and p53 tumor suppressor gene products. These results indicate that Abl inhibits cell proliferation by interacting with central elements of the cell cycle control apparatus in the nucleus, and suggest a direct connection between p53 and Rb in this growth-inhibitory pathway.

View details for Web of Science ID A1996UF65800013

View details for PubMedID 8612582

Abstract

Using immunodepletion of cyclin E and the inhibitor protein p21WAF/CIP1, we demonstrate that the cyclin E protein, in association with Cdk2, is required for the elongation phase of replication on single-stranded substrates. Although cyclin E/Cdk2 is likely to be the major target by which p21 inhibits the initiation of sperm DNA replication, p21 can inhibit single-stranded replication through a mechanism dependent on PCNA. While the cyclin E/Cdk2 complex appears to have a role in the initiation of DNA replication, another Cdk kinase, possibly cyclin A/Cdk, may be involved in a later step controlling the switch from initiation to elongation. The provision of a large maternal pool of cyclin E protein shows that regulators of replication are constitutively present, which explains the lack of a protein synthesis requirement for replication in the early embryonic cell cycle.

View details for Web of Science ID A1995RQ21900001

View details for PubMedID 7642695

Abstract

Activated forms of the nuclear and cytoplasmic tyrosine kinase c-Abl are completely cytoplasmic and oncogenic. The overexpression of c-Abl, and in certain fibroblast cell lines even of v-Abl, leads to a cell cycle arrest revealing an alternative Abl function. To facilitate the analysis of this growth inhibitory function we have taken advantage of regulable Abl-estrogen receptor (ABL:ER) fusion proteins. Oncogenic in the presence of estrogen, they are reversibly switched to inhibit cell proliferation upon removal of hormone. Using this system, we demonstrate that inhibition is effected by Abl derivatives which we have previously shown to be hypo-phosphorylated and to have low kinase activity. Since an almost exclusively cytoplasmic ABL:ER protein is fully growth inhibitory, relevant interactions may occur in the cytoplasm. We identify the cell cycle arrest as an early G1 or G0-like block. Interestingly, growth inhibition correlates with an altered expression pattern of early serum response genes; c-Jun mRNA and c-Fos protein levels are elevated in Abl-blocked cells. In view of the two functional modes of overexpressed Abl proteins, one can speculate that normal c-Abl may be involved in relaying growth regulatory signals from the membrane to the nucleus.

View details for Web of Science ID A1995QR65100009

View details for PubMedID 7731683

Abstract

The protein p21 (WAF1, CIP1 or sdi1), induced by the tumour-suppressor protein p53, interacts with and inhibits two different targets essential for cell-cycle progression. One of these is the cyclin-Cdk family of kinases and the other is the essential DNA replication factor, proliferating-cell nuclear antigen (PCNA). We report here that separate domains of p21 are responsible for interacting with and inhibiting the two targets. An amino-terminal domain inhibits cyclin-Cdk kinases and a carboxy-terminal domain inhibits PCNA. Using these separated domains, we have determined that p21 inhibits different biological systems through different targets. The PCNA-binding domain is sufficient for inhibition of DNA replication based on simian virus 40, whereas the Cdk2-binding domain is sufficient for inhibition of DNA replication based on Xenopus egg extract and for growth suppression in transformed human cells.

View details for Web of Science ID A1995QN63000067

View details for PubMedID 7885482

View details for Web of Science ID A1994PT48100004

View details for PubMedID 7954823

Abstract

The myristoylated form of c-Abl protein, as well as the P210bcr/abl protein, have been shown by indirect immunofluorescence to associate with F-actin stress fibers in fibroblasts. Analysis of deletion mutants of c-Abl stably expressed in fibroblasts maps the domain responsible for this interaction to the extreme COOH-terminus of Abl. This domain mediates the association of a heterologous protein with F-actin filaments after microinjection into NIH 3T3 cells, and directly binds to F-actin in a cosedimentation assay. Microinjection and cosedimentation assays localize the actin-binding domain to a 58 amino acid region, including a charged motif at the extreme COOH-terminus that is important for efficient binding. F-actin binding by Abl is calcium independent, and Abl competes with gelsolin for binding to F-actin. In addition to the F-actin binding domain, the COOH-terminus of Abl contains a proline-rich region that mediates binding and sequestration of G-actin, and the Abl F- and G-actin binding domains cooperate to bundle F-actin filaments in vitro. The COOH terminus of Abl thus confers several novel localizing functions upon the protein, including actin binding, nuclear localization, and DNA binding. Abl may modify and receive signals from the F-actin cytoskeleton in vivo, and is an ideal candidate to mediate signal transduction from the cell surface and cytoskeleton to the nucleus.

View details for Web of Science ID A1994MT69900010

View details for PubMedID 8294516

Abstract

Fusion of the hormone binding domain (HBD) of steroid receptors to transcription factors renders them hormone-dependent. We show here that an SH3-deleted, oncogenic variant of the Abl tyrosine kinase becomes hormone-dependent for transformation by fusion to the estrogen receptor (ER) HBD, extending the phenomenon to tyrosine kinases. Surprisingly, fusion of the HBD to the normal, non-transforming c-Abl (IV) protein activated transforming activity in a hormone-dependent fashion. In the presence of hormone, the c-Abl:ER fusion protein was transforming, cytoplasmic and tyrosine phosphorylated, whereas it was non-transforming, nuclear and hypophosphorylated without hormone. We have examined the kinetics of activation of the c-Abl:ER protein and found that protein synthesis is required both for kinase activation and for redistribution of the c-Abl:ER protein from the nucleus to the cytoplasm. We suggest that the activation of c-Abl could be due to HBD-mediated dimerization and/or to the ability to overexpress conditionally the normally toxic c-Abl protein. This novel approach may be applicable to a wide variety of proteins, particularly when activating mutations or physiological inducers are unknown or when the protein is toxic to cells.

View details for Web of Science ID A1993LK36400025

View details for PubMedID 8334997

Abstract

c-abl is the normal cellular homolog of the v-abl transforming gene of Abelson murine leukemia virus. By constructing recombinants between c- and v-abl retroviruses, we show that a point mutation in c-Abl is sufficient to change the myristoylated form of c-Abl into a protein able to transform fibroblasts, but not capable of transforming bone marrow or inducing Abelson disease. This activating mutation, which changes the phenylalanine at amino acid 420 to valine (F420V) found in the homologous position of v-Abl, is positioned outside of the SH3 domain, a region typically modified in transforming alleles of abl. Phenylalanine 420 is perfectly conserved among tyrosine kinases with N-terminal SH3 domains (the Src and Abl families). The equivalent position in other protein tyrosine kinases is a conserved hydrophobic residue that predicts the specific family to which that kinase belongs. Mutation of phenylalanine 420 to other hydrophobic residues activates c-Abl. Unlike other transforming variants of Abl, the F420V mutant protein is not highly phosphorylated on tyrosine. Mutation of the nearby proposed autophosphorylation site, tyrosine 412, shows that this tyrosine is not strictly required for fibroblast transformation in either F420V or SH3-deleted variants of c-Abl (IV).

View details for Web of Science ID A1993LG68200027

View details for PubMedID 8510937

Abstract

N-terminal myristoylation can promote the association of proteins with the plasma membrane, a property that is required for oncogenic variants of Src and Abl to transform fibroblastic cell types. The P210bcr/abl protein of chronic myelogenous leukemia cells is not myristoylated and does not stably transform NIH 3T3 fibroblasts; however, it will transform lymphoid and myeloid cell types in vitro and in vivo, suggesting that myristoylation is not required for Abl variants to transform hematopoietic cells. To test this hypothesis, we introduced point mutations that disrupt myristoylation into two activated Abl proteins, v-Abl and a deletion mutant of c-Abl (delta XB), and examined their ability to transform an interleukin-3-dependent lymphoblastoid cell line, Ba/F3. Neither of the nonmyristoylated Abl proteins transformed NIH 3T3 fibroblasts, but like P210bcr/abl, both were capable of transforming the Ba/F3 cells to factor independence and tumorigenicity. Nonmyristoylated Abl variants did not associate with the plasma membrane in the transformed Ba/F3 cells. These results demonstrate that Abl proteins can transform hematopoietic cells in the absence of membrane association and suggest that distinct functions of Abl are required for transformation of fibroblast and hematopoietic cell types.

View details for Web of Science ID A1992HK75100050

View details for PubMedID 1549131

Abstract

We have constructed a series of point mutations in the highly conserved FLVRES motif of the src homology 2 (SH2) domain of the abl tyrosine kinase. Mutant SH2 domains were expressed in bacteria, and their ability to bind to tyrosine-phosphorylated proteins was examined in vitro. Three mutants were greatly reduced in their ability to bind both phosphotyrosine itself and tyrosine-phosphorylated cellular proteins. All of the mutants that retained activity bound to the same set of tyrosine-phosphorylated proteins as did the wild type, suggesting that binding specificity was unaffected. These results implicate the FLVRES motif in direct binding to phosphotyrosine. When the mutant SH2 domains were inserted into an activated abl kinase and expressed in murine fibroblasts, decreased in vitro phosphotyrosine binding correlated with decreased transforming ability. This finding implies that SH2-phosphotyrosine interactions are involved in transmission of positive growth signals by the nonreceptor tyrosine kinases, most likely via the assembly of multiprotein complexes with other tyrosine-phosphorylated proteins.

View details for Web of Science ID A1992HB06600017

View details for PubMedID 1370711

Abstract

The c-abl proto-oncogene, which encodes a cytoplasmic protein-tyrosine kinase, is expressed throughout murine gestation and ubiquitously in adult mouse tissues. However, its levels are highest in thymus, spleen, and testes. To examine the in vivo role of c-abl, the gene was disrupted in embryonic stem cells, and the resulting genetically modified cells were used to establish a mouse strain carrying the mutation. Most mice homozygous for the c-abl mutation became runted and died 1 to 2 weeks after birth. In addition, many showed thymic and splenic atrophy and a T and B cell lymphopenia.

View details for Web of Science ID A1991FU89900008

View details for PubMedID 2065352

Abstract

Several proteins implicated in the regulation of cell proliferation contain a common noncatalytic domain, src homology region 2 (SH2). We have used the bacterially expressed SH2 domain of abl protein-tyrosine kinase to evaluate the ability of this domain to bind to cellular proteins. ablSH2 specifically bound to a number of tyrosine-phosphorylated proteins from cells transformed by tyrosine kinase oncogenes in a filter-binding assay and to a subset of those proteins in solution. The SH2 probe bound almost exclusively to tyrosine-phosphorylated proteins, and binding was eliminated by dephosphorylation of cell proteins. Free phosphotyrosine could partially disrupt SH2 binding, suggesting that phosphotyrosine is directly involved in the binding interaction. These results demonstrate that an SH2 domain is sufficient to confer direct, high-affinity phosphotyrosine-dependent binding to proteins and suggest a general role for SH2 domains in cellular signaling pathways.

View details for Web of Science ID A1991ET52100065

View details for PubMedID 1703304

Abstract

The subcellular localization of the mouse type IV c-abl protein was determined by indirect immunofluorescence of nontransformed NIH 3T3 fibroblasts that overexpress the protein. Unlike the viral transforming protein p160gag/v-abl, which has cytoplasmic and plasma membrane localization, a large fraction of the c-abl (IV) protein is nuclear, with the remainder in the cytoplasm and plasma membrane. Deletion of a small N-terminal regulatory region of the c-abl (IV) protein, sufficient to activate its transforming potential fully, changes the distribution of the protein from the nucleus to the cytoplasm. Mapping of an amino acid sequence responsible for the nuclear localization of the c-abl (IV) protein reveals a nuclear localization signal similar to that of SV40 large T antigen.

View details for Web of Science ID A1989AM54700010

View details for PubMedID 2670246

Abstract

The two major forms of the c-abl gene differ from their activated counterpart, the v-abl oncogene of the Abelson murine leukemia virus by the replacement of their N-terminal sequences with viral gag sequences. Overexpression of p150c-abl type IV in a retroviral vector similar to Abelson virus does not transform NIH 3T3 fibroblasts, even though it is expressed and myristoylated at levels comparable to pp160v-abl. Members of a nested set of deletion mutations of the N-terminus of c-abl type IV in this expression system will activate abl to transform murine fibroblasts. The smallest of these deletions, delta XB, efficiently transforms lymphoid cells in vitro and causes leukemia in vivo demonstrating that gag sequences are not necessary for abl-induced leukemogenesis. The delta XB mutation defines an N-terminal regulatory domain, which shares a surprising homology with chicken oncogene v-crk and phospholipase C-II. Although overexpression of the myristoylated form of c-abl does not transform cells, it nonetheless has a profound effect on cell growth.

View details for Web of Science ID A1989T348700016

View details for PubMedID 2542016