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Molecular and Cellular Biology, January 2008, p. 131-139, Vol. 28, No. 1
0270-7306/08/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/MCB.01119-07
Copyright © 2008, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

The Alpha Catalytic Subunit of Protein Kinase CK2 Is Required for Mouse Embryonic Development{triangledown}

David Y. Lou, Isabel Dominguez, Paul Toselli, Esther Landesman-Bollag, Conor O'Brien, and David C. Seldin*

Departments of Medicine and Biochemistry, Boston University Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts 02118

Received 23 June 2007/ Returned for modification 13 July 2007/ Accepted 6 October 2007

Protein kinase CK2 (formerly casein kinase II) is a highly conserved and ubiquitous serine/threonine kinase that is composed of two catalytic subunits (CK2{alpha} and/or CK2{alpha}') and two CK2β regulatory subunits. CK2 has many substrates in cells, and key roles in yeast cell physiology have been uncovered by introducing subunit mutations. Gene-targeting experiments have demonstrated that in mice, the CK2β gene is required for early embryonic development, while the CK2{alpha}' subunit appears to be essential only for normal spermatogenesis. We have used homologous recombination to disrupt the CK2{alpha} gene in the mouse germ line. Embryos lacking CK2{alpha} have a marked reduction in CK2 activity in spite of the presence of the CK2{alpha}' subunit. CK2{alpha}–/– embryos die in mid-gestation, with abnormalities including open neural tubes and reductions in the branchial arches. Defects in the formation of the heart lead to hydrops fetalis and are likely the cause of embryonic lethality. Thus, CK2{alpha} appears to play an essential and uncompensated role in mammalian development.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Boston University Medical Center, 650 Albany Street, Boston, MA 02118. Phone: (617) 638-7027. Fax: (617) 638-7530. E-mail: dseldin{at}bu.edu

{triangledown} Published ahead of print on 22 October 2007.

Molecular and Cellular Biology, January 2008, p. 131-139, Vol. 28, No. 1
0270-7306/08/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/MCB.01119-07
Copyright © 2008, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



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