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Mol. Cell. Biol., 04 1996, 1401-1409, Vol 16, No. 4
R Lin, P Beauparlant, C Makris, S Meloche and J Hiscott
The NF-kappaB/Rel transcription factors participate in the activation of
immune system regulatory genes and viral early genes including the human
immunodeficiency virus type 1 long terminal repeat. NF-kappaB/Rel proteins
are coupled to inhibitory molecules, collectively termed IkappaB, which are
responsible for cytoplasmic retention of NF-kappaB. Cell activation leads
to the phosphorylation and degradation of IkappaBalpha, permitting
NG-kappaB/Rel translocation to the nucleus and target gene activation. To
further characterize the signaling events that contribute to IkappaBalpha
phosphorylation, a kinase activity was isolated from Jurkat T cells that
specifically interacted with IkappaBalpha in an affinity chromatography
step and phosphorylated IkappaBalpha with high specificity in vitro. By
using an in-gel kinase assay with recombinant IkappaBalpha as substrate,
two forms of the kinase (43 and 38 kDa) were identified. Biochemical
criteria and immunological cross-reactivity identified the kinase activity
as the alpha catalytic subunit of casein kinase II (CKII). Deletion mutants
of IkappaBalpha delta1 to delta4) localized phosphorylation to the C-
terminal PEST domain of IkappaBalpha. Point mutation of residues T-291,
S-283, and T-299 dramatically reduced phosphorylation of IkappaBalpha by
the kinase in vitro. NIH-3T3 cells that stably expressed wild-type
IkappaBalpha (wtIkappaB), double-point-mutated IkappaBalpha (T291A, S283A),
or triple-point-mutated IkappaBalpha (T291A, S283A, T299A) under the
control of the tetracycline-responsive promoter were generated.
Constitutive phosphorylation of the triple point mutant was eliminated in
vivo, although tumor necrosis factor-inducible IkappaBalpha degradation was
unaffected. In cell lines and in transiently transfected cells, mutation of
the CKII sites in IkappaBalpha resulted in a protein with increased
intrinsic stability. Together with results demonstrating a role for
N-terminal sites in inducer-mediated phosphorylation and degradation of
IkappaBalpha, these studies indicate that CKII sites in the C-terminal PEST
domain are important for constitutive phosphorylation and intrinsic
stability of IkappaBalpha.
Copyright © 1996, American Society for Microbiology
Phosphorylation of IkappaBalpha in the C-terminal PEST domain by casein kinase II affects intrinsic protein stability
Lady Davis Institute for Medical Research, Sir Mortimer B. Davis Jewish General Hospital, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
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