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Molecular and Cellular Biology, April 2007, p. 2431-2441, Vol. 27, No. 7
0270-7306/07/$08.00+0 doi:10.1128/MCB.01479-06
Copyright © 2007, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Division of Nephrology, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan School of Medicine, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-0676,1 Department of Veterans Affairs, Ann Arbor, Michigan 481052
Received 9 August 2006/ Returned for modification 3 October 2006/ Accepted 9 January 2007
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Although considerable work has been done to establish the role of JIP1 in regulating JNK signaling (23, 31), less is known about the mechanisms that govern this regulation. We previously demonstrated that the JNK module components DLK and JNK interact with JIP1 in a dynamic manner to regulate the activation of the associated mixed-lineage kinase and ultimately JNK module activity (23, 24). According to previously published results, DLK associates with JIP1 in a monomeric, catalytically inactive state under basal conditions. Upon appropriate stimulation, JNK is recruited to JIP1 and JIP1 is phosphorylated by JNK. Particularly as a result of JNK-dependent phosphorylation on JIP1(T103), DLK dissociates from JIP1, oligomerizes, and becomes catalytically active. While contrary to standard convention, our previous results implied that recruitment of JNK to JIP1 and JNK-dependent phosphorylation of JIP1 is prerequisite to activation of the upstream kinases that are components of a preassembled inactive JIP1 complex. The concept that the JIP1-JNK interaction influences the dynamics or activation state of JIP1 complex components has been supported subsequently in studies by others suggesting, for example, that recruitment of JNK to JIP1 and phosphorylation on T103 regulates JIP1-Akt dynamics and Akt activity (16, 18) or that, in S. cerevisiae, Fus3 catalytic activity is primed by allosteric effects of Ste5 on Fus3 prior to Ste5-Fus3 module activation (2).
While the results of these studies improved our understanding of the dynamics of the JIP1-JNK module, the mechanism by which this module is regulated remained unclear. JIP1 is known to be phosphorylated on multiple serine and threonine residues, and it has been anticipated but not demonstrated that JIP1 might also be phosphorylated on tyrosine residues (5). For this reason, it was hypothesized that inputs to JIP1 from other signaling pathways that are mediated by unidentified protein kinases or phosphatases might play a role in JIP1 phosphorylation and function. Certainly, work in unrelated systems suggested that these JIP1 phosphorylation events might regulate complex assembly, subcellular localization, or activation (26, 28). In work aimed at addressing this hypothesis, we discovered that Src family kinase (SFK) directly binds and tyrosine phosphorylates JIP1 under basal conditions in several naturally occurring systems and by doing so appears to provide a signal that increases the affinity of JIP1 for DLK and maintains the JIP-JNK module in a catalytically inactive state.
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-tubulin (Santa Cruz Biotechnology), and Yes (Upstate Biotechnology) antibodies were obtained commercially. Monoclonal JIP1 antibody was obtained from BD Transduction Laboratories (catalog no. 611890). The cell transfection reagents Fugene and Lipofectamine-2000 were purchased from Roche Biochemicals and Invitrogen, respectively. All chemical reagents, including kainic acid and PP2, were obtained commercially from Sigma and Calbiochem, respectively. A phosphoprotein enrichment kit for isolating phosphorylated proteins from cell lysate was purchased from BD Biosciences (catalog no. K1256-1). A JIP1 affinity matrix was prepared by coupling purified His-JIP1 to a cyanogen bromide-activated matrix (Sigma, catalog no. C9142) using the manufacturer's protocol. Recombinant glutathione S-transferase (GST)-Fyn fusion proteins, GST-c-Jun-(1-79), and His-JIP1 were prepared and purified from bacterial lysates as described previously (24). Purified active His-Fyn (Upstate Biotechnology) was obtained commercially. Mammalian expression plasmids encoding various SFKs were previously described (30). Fyn/ mice (129-Fyntm1Sor/J; stock number 002271) were obtained from Jackson Laboratory (Bar Harbor, ME). All animal experiments were approved by the University Committee on the Use and Care of Animals Institutional Review Board at the University of Michigan Medical School. Preparation of mouse brain lysate. Brain lysate was prepared based on the procedure described by Kasahara et al. (13) Briefly, mouse brains were homogenized in ice-cold buffer (0.32 M sucrose, 1 mM Tris-HCl [pH 7.4], 0.1 mM EDTA) using a Teflon motor-driven glass homogenizer. The homogenate was centrifuged at 400 x g for 5 min, and the supernatant was centrifuged at 12,000 x g for 20 min. The resulting pellet was solubilized in TNE membrane lysis buffer (50 mM Tris-HCl [pH 7.5], 1% NP-40, 150 mM NaCl, 1 mM Na3VO4, 0.5 mM EDTA, 5 mM NaF, 5 mM Na4P2O7, and a mixture of protease inhibitors) at 4°C for 20 min. These postnuclear supernatants were collected after centrifugation at 20,000 x g for 10 min. Total protein was estimated using a standard Bradford assay. The lysate was subsequently used for affinity chromatography and kinase assays.
JIP1 affinity chromatography. JIP1-interacting proteins were isolated from mouse brain lysate by using the phosphoprotein enrichment kit from BD Biosciences according to the manufacturer's protocol. Briefly, mouse brain lysate was prepared by homogenization as described above. The resulting tissue pellet was dissolved in extraction buffer (buffer A, phosphoprotein enrichment kit, catalog no. S3406) and subjected to fractionation on a phosphocellulose column (catalog no. S3405). Bound phosphoproteins were eluted with elution buffer (buffer B, catalog no. S3407) and then further fractionated on a His-JIP1 affinity column. Eluted phosphoproteins were incubated with His-JIP beads for 3 h at 4°C and then washed with phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) containing 0.1% Tween 20. Beads were boiled in sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) sample buffer, and associated proteins were resolved by SDS-PAGE. Gels were stained with Coomassie blue, and stained bands were cut and analyzed by mass spectrometry at the University of Michigan core facility (Michigan Proteome Consortium).
Bacterial fusion protein construction and expression. GST-c-Jun(1-79) fusion protein was prepared as described previously (24). GST-JNK3 (preactivated and catalytically competent) used as a control was obtained from Upstate Biotechnology. Hexahistidine-tagged full-length JIP1(1-711) and GST-JIP1 were described previously (24). Tyrosine-phosphorylated GST-JIP1 was produced in Escherichia coli TKB1 (Stratagene) according to the manufacturer's protocol. Purified active His-Fyn (Upstate Biotechnology) was obtained commercially.
In vitro binding assays. Purified His-Fyn was bound to nickel beads. These beads were incubated for 3 h at 4°C with either purified GST, purified GST-JIP1, or purified GST-JIP1 expressed in TKB1 cells in a volume of 400 µl containing PBS and 0.1% Tween-20. After a washing with PBS containing 0.1% Tween-20, beads were eluted with elution buffer containing imidazole. Eluate was resolved by SDS-PAGE prior to immunoblotting with the indicated panel of antibodies (see Fig. 1). For the overlay assay, purified His-Fyn (0.2 µg per lane), purified GST-Fyn-SH2 and GST-Fyn-SH3 domains, and GST proteins (2 µg per lane) were resolved by SDS-PAGE, transferred to nitrocellulose, and overlaid with GST-JIP1 fusion proteins (2 µg each) for 6 h at 4°C. The associated JIP1 proteins were detected by immunoblotting the membranes with monoclonal JIP1 antibody.
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FIG. 1. JIP1 interacts with SFKs in vivo. (A) Endogenous JIP1 was coimmunoprecipitated with endogenous Lyn, Fyn, or Yes from normal mouse brain lysates. Note that endogenous JIP1 that coimmunoprecipitated with the various SFKs was tyrosine phosphorylated. (B) Flag-JIP1 and the indicated SFKs were coexpressed in COS-7 cells. As in panel A, JIP1 coimmunoprecipitated with the indicated SFK and was tyrosine phosphorylated under these conditions. (C) JIP1 binds directly to Fyn in a tyrosine phosphorylation-dependent fashion. Immobilized His-Fyn was mixed with GST, GST-JIP1 or GST-JIP1 expressed in TKB1 cells. The GST-JIP1 pull-down complex was resolved by SDS-PAGE and immunoblotted using JIP1 antibody. Input of proteins was detected by Coomassie blue staining or immunoblotting. (D) Recombinant His-Fyn, GST-Fyn-SH2, GST-Fyn-SH3, or GST alone was run on SDS-PAGE, transferred to membranes, and overlaid with the indicated GST fusion proteins; bound JIP1 proteins were detected by immunoblotting. (E) Fyn directly phosphorylates JIP1. Purified recombinant His-JIP1 was mixed with either active His-Fyn or active GST-JNK (as a positive control), incubated in a kinase buffer containing [ -32P]ATP at 30°C for 30 min, and then resolved by SDS-PAGE and autoradiography. The same blot was immunoblotted with JIP1 antibody to ensure that the phosphorylated protein is JIP1. Similar results were obtained in three independent experiments. (F) JIP1 is tyrosine phosphorylated in vivo. Flag-JIP1 was coexpressed with Fyn in COS-7 cells. Where indicated, at 24 h posttransfection cells were pretreated with PP2 (5 µM) or with sodium orthovanadate (50 µM) or both. JIP1 was immunoprecipitated from cell lysates, and immunoprecipitates were analyzed for JIP1 tyrosine phosphorylation by immunoblotting.
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Cell culture. Cells of the HN33 line, an immortalized rat hippocampal neuronal cell line, were a gift from Y.-F. Liu (24). Mouse neuroblastoma cell line N2a was obtained from the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC; catalog no. CCL-131). The cells were cultured in Dulbecco's modified Eagle medium (DMEM) supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum (Invitrogen) and 200 units/ml penicillin and streptomycin (Roche Diagnostics). The transfections were performed using Fugene-6 (Roche Diagnostics) according to the manufacturer's protocols. Where indicated, cells were treated by the addition of various concentrations of kainic acid or reelin (400 µl supernatant from reelin-expressing 293 cells, as described previously [4]). 3T3-L1 cells were grown according to established protocols (15). Where indicated, cells were grown for 2 days postconfluence and treated with MDI (methylisobutylxanthine, dexamethasone, and insulin) for various intervals. The cells were lysed in lysis buffer (50 mM HEPES [pH 7.4], 1% NP-40, 150 mM NaCl, 0.5% deoxycholate, 1 mM Na3VO4, 0.5 mM EDTA, 5 mM NaF, 5 mM Na4P2O7, 10 mM ß-glycerophosphate, and a mixture of protease inhibitors). SYF cells (c-Src/ Yes/ Fyn/) were purchased from the ATCC (CRL-2459) and cultured according to the supplier's instructions. SYF cells were transfected with Lipofectamine-2000 according to manufacturer's protocol.
Immunoprecipitation, immunoblotting, and pull-down assay. Immunoprecipitation, immunoblotting, and pull-down experiments were performed using the procedures described previously (24).
JNK activation assays. Cell lysates were prepared 24 h after transfection using 1 ml of TNE membrane lysis buffer (50 mM Tris · HCl [pH 8.0], 1% [wt/vol] Nonidet P-40, 120 mM NaCl, 5 mM EDTA, 0.2 mM sodium vanadate, 50 mM sodium fluoride, 20 mM ß-glycerophosphate, and a cocktail of protease inhibitors [Boehringer Mannheim]). Kinase assays for JNK or JIP1 immune complexes were performed as described previously (24). The relative activity from each sample was estimated using ImageQuant software from Molecular Dynamics.
JIP1 peptide array.
JIP1 peptides (10- to 15-mers centered around tyrosine and flanked by alanine) representing the theoretical tyrosine phosphorylation sites (5) were synthesized by Sigma. The peptides were dissolved according to the manufacturer's instructions, and the spot array was generated by spotting these peptides onto polyvinylidene difluoride membranes at high density. Membranes were subjected to an in vitro kinase assay by incubating them with 1 µg of preactivated recombinant Fyn or Yes (both Upstate Biotechnology Inc.) for 4 h at room temperature in kinase reaction buffer (50 mM HEPES [pH 7.5], 2.5 mM MgCl2, 4 mM MnCl2, 0.1 mM sodium orthovanadate) containing 50 µCi of [
-32P]ATP. The membranes were washed five times with PBS-Tween-20 and autoradiographed.
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JIP1 directly binds to and is directly phosphorylated by Src family kinases. To examine whether JIP1 and SFKs interact directly, purified bacterial recombinant His-Fyn immobilized on agarose beads was incubated in vitro with GST protein alone, GST-JIP1, or GST-JIP1 that was expressed in TKB1 bacteria in which JIP1 was tyrosine phosphorylated in a nonspecific fashion (Fig. 1C). Pull-down assays showed that JIP1 bound Fyn only when JIP1 was first tyrosine phosphorylated by expression in TKB1 cells. Consistent with this observation, as shown in a protein overlay interaction assay, Fyn bound JIP1 via its SH2 domain and not via its SH3 domain in an interaction that required prior tyrosine phosphorylation of JIP1 (Fig. 1D). To determine whether Fyn can directly phosphorylate JIP1 in vitro, purified His-JIP1 was incubated for 20 min with either activated recombinant His-Fyn or His-JNK (positive control) in a kinase buffer containing radiolabeled ATP (Fig. 1E). Under these conditions, JIP1 became phosphorylated. In additional experiments, JIP1 was expressed in COS-7 cells. When these cells were treated with sodium orthovanadate 30 min prior to cell lysis, JIP1 became tyrosine phosphorylated (Fig. 1F). Orthovanadate-induced JIP1 tyrosine phosphorylation was not blocked by addition of PP2, an inhibitor of SFK activity and possibly other protein kinases, suggesting that JIP1 may be a substrate for additional tyrosine kinases.
The affinity of JIP1 for DLK increases in the presence of SFK. Our previous work provided evidence that JIP1 is phosphorylated on multiple serine and threonine residues and suggested that phosphorylation on at least one of these residues was necessary for complex activation (24). Considered with these previous observations, the new results indicating that JIP1 is also tyrosine phosphorylated by SFKs suggested the hypothesis that signaling events culminating in tyrosine phosphorylation of JIP1 residues modulate JIP1 complex dynamics and activation. To begin to test this hypothesis, we examined the influence of Fyn-JIP1 interaction and Fyn-mediated tyrosine phosphorylation of JIP1 on the relationship of JIP1 to other components of the JIP1 module. Flag-JIP1 was coexpressed with HA-DLK, and the interaction between these two proteins was examined in the presence of increasing concentrations of Fyn (Fig. 2A). Here, increased concentration of Fyn resulted in a notable increase in DLK coimmunoprecipitated with JIP1. This observation was extended by examining whether the observed increased binding of JIP1 to DLK in the presence of Fyn was due to increased JIP1-DLK affinity or due to increased oligomerization of DLK while DLK was associated with JIP. Flag-DLK and HA-DLK were coexpressed with Myc-JIP1 in the presence or absence of Fyn (Fig. 2B). Flag-DLK was immunoprecipitated, and immune complexes were analyzed for the presence of HA-DLK. As previously observed, JIP1 inhibited DLK oligomerization (23); the presence of Fyn did not affect this inhibition. Therefore, when this observation is considered with the results noted above, it is concluded that the presence of Fyn results in increased JIP1-DLK binding affinity. This effect appeared to be dependent both on Fyn-JIP1 association and on Fyn kinase catalytic activity. Coexpression of a catalytically inactive mutant of Fyn with JIP1 and DLK did not increase JIP1-DLK binding affinity to the same extent as coexpression with catalytically competent Fyn (Fig. 2C and D). While loss of catalytic activity of Fyn did not affect binding of Fyn to JIP1 (Fig. 2D), inhibition of SFK activity with PP2 attenuated the Fyn-mediated increase in JIP1-DLK binding affinity in the same system (Fig. 2C). Collectively, these results suggest that while DLK-JIP affinity is determined in part by SFK catalytic activity, the physical association of Fyn and JIP1 may also influence JIP1-DLK affinity independent of Fyn catalytic activity.
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FIG. 2. Binding of DLK to JIP1 but not oligomerization of DLK is increased in the presence of Fyn. (A) COS-7 cells were cotransfected with plasmids encoding Flag-JIP1, HA-DLK, and increasing amounts of Fyn. Cell lysates were immunoprecipitated with anti-JIP1 antibody, separated by SDS-PAGE, and immunoblotted with HA or Fyn antibody. Corresponding lysates were immunoblotted with Fyn, DLK, and JIP1 antibodies to evaluate the expression of these proteins. (B) Plasmids encoding Flag-DLK and HA-DLK were cotransfected with Myc-JIP1 and/or Fyn. Cell lysates were immunoprecipitated with anti-Flag antibody and immunoblotted with anti-HA antibody. These experiments were repeated three times with similar results. (C) Fyn catalytic activity is required for increased affinity of JIP1 for DLK. COS-7 cells were cotransfected with the indicated plasmids. Where noted, cells were treated with PP2 prior to cell lysis. JIP1 was immunoprecipitated from cell lysate, and immune complexes were separated by SDS-PAGE and immunoblotted. (D) Catalytic activity of Fyn is not required for association of Fyn with JIP1. COS-7 cells were cotransfected with plasmids encoding HA-DLK and Flag-JIP1 and with the indicated quantities of either wild-type Fyn or Fyn-KD (kinase-inactive mutant). JIP1 was immunoprecipitated from cell lysates, and immune complexes were separated by SDS-PAGE and immunoblotted with Fyn or HA antibodies.
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FIG. 3. SFKs directly phosphorylate JIP1 on tyrosine residues. (A) JIP1 peptides containing theoretical tyrosine phosphorylation sites (5) were used to generate a spot peptide array. As controls, mutant peptides were created in which tyrosine residues were replaced with phenylalanine. Recombinant His-JIP served as an additional control. The array was subjected to an in vitro kinase assay in the presence of recombinant Fyn or Yes. Asterisks indicate the predicted tyrosine residues within JIP1 peptides. (B to E) The indicated plasmids were expressed in COS-7 cells, and lysates were analyzed.
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FIG. 4. JIP tyrosine mutants attenuate the effect of Fyn on module activation. Myc-JNK was coexpressed with the indicated plasmids in COS-7 cells. JNK kinase catalytic activity was analyzed in kinase buffer containing the substrate GST-c-Jun. The relative activity from each sample was estimated quantitatively. Corresponding lysates were also analyzed for the expression of the indicated proteins. Results are means plus standard errors of the means for five independent experiments.
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FIG. 5. JIP1 is tyrosine phosphorylated in 3T3-L1 preadipocytes in an SFK-dependent fashion. (A) Survey of JIP1 expression and JIP1 tyrosine phosphorylation in neuronal cell lines (HN33 and NIEp115) or 3T3-L1 cells cultured in either DMEM containing calf serum (CS) for 2 days or in DMEM containing fetal bovine serum (FBS) for 8 days. (B to D) 3T3-L1 cells were grown for 2 days postconfluence in DMEM containing 10% CS and then stimulated with insulin (100 nM) for the indicated times. JIP1 was immunoprecipitated, and immune complexes were separated on SDS-PAGE and immunoblotted with the indicated antibodies. Immunoblot analysis of the corresponding cell lysates was performed to evaluate the presence of indicated proteins using their specific antibodies. In panel C, JIP1 immune complex was also subjected to JNK catalytic assay using GST-c-Jun as the substrate. These experiments were repeated five times with similar results. (D) Tyrosine phosphorylation of JIP1, total JNK activation, and IRS1 phosphorylation were analyzed after pretreatment of 3T3-L1 cells with the SFK inhibitors PP2 (5 µM) and SU6656 (1 µM).
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FIG. 7. Fyn attenuates JNK module activity by tyrosine phosphorylating JIP1. (A) Extracts were prepared from N2a cells treated with 100 µM kainic acid for 30 min or left untreated. JIP1 complexes were immunoprecipitated using JIP1 antibody and analyzed by immunoblotting with anti-DLK and antiphosphotyrosine antibodies. Immunoprecipitation with preimmune serum (PI) was used as control. (B and C) Mutation of tyrosine 431 in JIP1 induces JNK activation in N2a cells. Flag-JIP1(Y431F) (1 µg) or Flag-JIP1(R160G/P161G/Y431F) was expressed in N2a cells. At 24 h posttransfection, cells were treated with kainic acid for 30 min. Endogenous JNK catalytic activity was assayed in kinase buffer containing [ -32P]ATP using GST-c-Jun as the substrate. The relative activity from each sample was quantified using a phosphorimager. This experiment was conducted three times with similar results. Results are means plus standard errors of the means.
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FIG. 6. Stimulation of neuronal cells with either reelin or kainic acid decreases Fyn-dependent JIP1 tyrosine phosphorylation. (A) HN33 neuronal cells were cotransfected with plasmids encoding Flag-JIP1 (1 µg), ApoER2 (0.5 µg), and Fyn (0.2 µg). At 24 h posttransfection, cells were treated with reelin for the indicated times. JIP1 was immunoprecipitated from the cell lysate, and the immune complexes were analyzed for JIP1 tyrosine phosphorylation and Fyn binding. (B) HN33 cells were cotransfected with Flag-JIP1 (1 µg) and Fyn (0.2 µg). At 24 h posttransfection, cells were treated with 100 µM kainic acid for the indicated times. Tyrosine phosphorylation of JIP1 was analyzed by immunoprecipitating JIP1 from cell lysates and immunoblotting with antiphosphotyrosine antibody. JNK catalytic activity was assayed by immunoprecipitating total JNK from lysate and incubating the immune complex with kinase buffer containing [ -32P]ATP and GST-c-Jun.
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Deletion of Fyn in mice affects JIP-JNK dynamics. Collectively, these results provide evidence from three cell culture model systems to support the contention that appropriate cell stimulation results in decreased SFK-dependent JIP1 phosphorylation, resulting in turn in disinhibition of JIP1-JNK module activity, and that this is a common mechanism employed by JIP-dependent signaling modules. In a final set of confirmatory experiments, the proposed mechanism was examined in model systems that were genetically deficient of Fyn or of Fyn, c-Src, and Yes. In the first experiment, SYF (cSrc/ Fyn/ Yes/) cells were rescued by re-expressing Fyn or catalytically inactive Fyn to examine whether Fyn catalytic activity was sufficient to alter JIP-DLK affinity and modulate JNK activity; the effect of expression of Yes or c-Src was not examined in this system. As shown in Fig. 8A, expression of Fyn in SYF cells resulted in significantly enhanced interaction between JIP1 and DLK compared to transfection of cells with either catalytically inactive Fyn or vector control. As observed in earlier experiments (Fig. 2D), binding of Fyn to JIP1 was not dependent on the catalytic activity of Fyn (Fig. 8A). In a second experiment, JIP1 was immunoprecipitated from brain lysate obtained from Fyn-null mice or wild-type littermates, and these immune complexes were analyzed for JIP1 tyrosine phosphorylation, the association of DLK, and JNK activity. As shown in Fig. 8B, tyrosine phosphorylation of JIP1 was significantly reduced in the brain lysates of Fyn-null mice. Moreover, as predicted from the results shown above and consistent with the hypothesis that Fyn-dependent phosphorylation of JIP1 maintains the JIP1-DLK-JNK module in a basal inactive state, the affinity of DLK for JIP1 in Fyn-null mice was attenuated, and basal JNK activity in brains of Fyn-null mice was increased relative to that in brains of wild-type littermates. Collectively, these results provide confirmatory genetic evidence for the role of Fyn and Fyn-dependent tyrosine phosphorylation of JIP1 in the regulation of JIP1-dependent JNK module activation. We cannot entirely exclude a role for other SFKs in this mechanism, since additional results reported above suggest that other SFKs might participate to some extent in this mechanism.
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FIG. 8. Endogenous JIP1 module dynamics are altered after genetic deletion of Fyn in cell culture and in vivo. (A) SYF cells deficient in Src, Fyn, and Yes were transfected with plasmids expressing Fyn or a catalytically inactive Fyn (Fyn-KD) or with a vector control. JIP1 was immunoprecipitated from these cell lysates and examined. (B) JIP1 tyrosine phosphorylation and association of JIP1 with DLK is reduced in the brains of Fyn-deficient mice. JIP1 was immunoprecipitated from brain lysate of Fyn/ or wild-type littermates using JIP1 antibody or preimmune control serum (PI). Immunoprecipitates were separated by SDS-PAGE, transferred to nitrocellulose, and immunoblotted with DLK or antiphosphotyrosine antibodies. Endogenous JNK kinase catalytic activity was assayed as before. This experiment used two mice from each group and was repeated three times with similar results.
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Several observations support the conclusion that under basal conditions, JIP1 interaction with and tyrosine phosphorylation by SFKs maintain the JIP1 module in an inactive state; most important among these are our observations that inhibition of endogenous SFK activity in naturally occurring modules or that targeted deletion of Fyn in mouse brain results in decreased JIP1 tyrosine phosphorylation, attenuated DLK-JIP1 affinity, and increased JNK catalytic activity. Further, it is remarkable that simple overexpression of the JIP1(Y431F) mutant in which SFK-dependent tyrosine phosphorylation is prevented results in activation of endogenous JNK in a JIP-dependent fashion. Presumably, this dominant gain-of-function effect of JIP1(Y431F) results from competition of mutant JIP1 with endogenous JIP1 for assembly of components of the JIP1-JNK module in a fashion that promotes JNK activation. In part, this may be due to an effect on JIP1-DLK affinity; however, the possibility that the SFK-JIP1 interaction also influences the functional interaction of JIP and JNK or JIP with additional regulatory proteins cannot be excluded.
Our previously published results showed that stimulus-induced JNK recruitment to JIP1 precedes JNK-dependent Ser/Thr phosphorylation of JIP1, a priming event that is required for subsequent activation of the JIP1-dependent JNK module (23, 24). We have hypothesized that an initiating JIP1 Ser/Thr phosphorylation event and/or an event that results in JIP tyrosine dephosphorylation results in JIP conformational changes that increase the affinity of JIP for JNK, resulting in recruitment of catalytically competent JNK to the module and then in module activation after JNK-mediated phosphorylation at T103. Recently published work by Bhattacharyya et al. suggests a potentially relevant mechanism by which changes in phosphorylation on JIP could result in a subsequent priming JNK-dependent JIP1 phosphorylation event (2). These investigators demonstrated that the yeast scaffold Ste5 activates by an allosteric mechanism the mitogen-activated protein kinase Fus3, inducing autophosphorylation of Fus3 on only one of two residues in its activation loop. By a feedback mechanism, this partial autoactivation of Fus3 is sufficient to promote phosphorylation on specific residues on the yeast module scaffold. A similar mechanism might be employed in the partial activation of mammalian JNK, which then primes full activation of the module via a positive feedback mechanism.
The intracellular signaling mechanisms by which proximal signals are transduced to the JIP module remain unstudied. It is intriguing that following cellular stimulation, JIP1 is rapidly tyrosine dephosphorylated in each of the model systems investigated. Collectively, these results suggest the possibility that JIP1 module activation is achieved through a rapid switch between a basal state in which JIP1 is tyrosine phosphorylated and an activated state in which JIP1 becomes Ser/Thr phosphorylated by JNK. JIP1 tyrosine dephosphorylation might be influenced by a change in the activation state of associated SFKs. However, the manner in which JIP tyrosine dephosphorylation is influenced by the activation state of associated SFKs requires study, especially since insulin, reelin, and kainic acid stimulation induce rather than attenuate total cellular SFK catalytic activity (3, 20, 27). Alternative hypothetical mechanisms by which JIP module activation is initiated are worthy of investigation. For example, one might speculate that the rapid dephosphorylation of endogenous JIP1 observed in response to cellular stimulation requires the induction of a JIP tyrosine phosphatase activity that subsequently alters JIP conformation and primes JIP module activation. In addition, it is possible that initiating Ser/Thr phosphorylation on JIP1 by several kinases, including JNK, could result in attenuation of the affinity of JIP1 for SFK, decreased JIP tyrosine phosphorylation, and subsequent module activation. Indeed, in data not shown, overexpression of catalytically competent JNK relative to JIP1 and SFK results in attenuated JIP1-SFK interaction in addition to previously reported decreased JIP1-DLK interaction and module activation.
Activation of the JIP1-dependent JNK module via the mechanism described above can be stimulated in a variety of cell types by several extracellular stimuli, including insulin, reelin, and kainic acid. These results suggest that this mechanism of JIP1 module regulation is employed commonly by JIP modules in diverse naturally occurring signaling pathways. Despite the common mechanism employed, assembly of distinct JIP modules creates units that are targeted to specific subcellular compartments, that are insulated from similar modules, and that can regulate functionally distinct substrates; as a result, these modules provide for signaling specificity in response to unique stimuli. Given the large number of mixed-lineage kinases that have the potential to interact with multiple JIP scaffold proteins, it is likely that many unique JIP complexes that subserve distinct cellular functions will be identified. The specific functions of DLK and its associated JIP module are just beginning to be identified (10). Therefore, it is noteworthy that our results place DLK in an endogenous insulin-sensitive pathway. JNK1 is thought to serve as an intermediary in a negative-feedback loop that attenuates the cellular response to insulin-stimulation (1). Indeed, JNK1 activity is induced in muscle and adipose tissue of obese mice, and deletion of JNK1 or JIP1 in obese mice results in decreased insulin resistance relative to controls (11, 12). Collectively, these observations suggest the hypothesis that a specific DLK-JNK1-JIP1 module participates in insulin-stimulated signal transduction.
Published ahead of print on 22 January 2007. ![]()
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