• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
• /
• v.43 no.1
• /
• pp.30-36
• /
• 2016

Brassinosteroids (BRs) are essential plant steroid hormones required for cell elongation, plant growth, development and abiotic and biotic stress tolerance. BRs are recognized by BRI1 receptor kinase that is localized in the plasma membrane, and the BRI1 protein will eventually autophosphorylate in the intracellular domain and transphosphorylate BAK1, which is a co-receptor in Arabidopsis thaliana. However, little is known of the role OsBRI1 receptor kinase plays in Oryza sativa, monocotyledonous plants, compared to that in Arabidopsis thaliana, dicotyledonous plants. As such, we have studied OsBRI1 receptor kinase in vitro and in vivo with recombinant protein and transgenic plants, whose phenotypes were also investigated. A OsBRI1 cytoplasmic domain (CD) recombinant protein was induced in BL21 (DE3) E.coli cells with IPTG, and purified to obtain OsBRI1 recombinant protein. Based on Western blot analysis with phospho-specific pTyr and pThr antibodies, OsBRI1 recombinant protein and OsBRI1-Flag protein were phosphorylated on Threonine residue(s), however, not on Tyrosine residue(s), both in vitro and in vivo. This is particularly intriguing as AtBRI1 protein was phosphorylated on both Ser/Thr and Tyr residues. Also, the OsBRI1 full-length gene was expressed in, and rescued, bri1-5 mutants, such as is seen in normal wild-type plants where AtBRI1-Flag rescues bri1-5 mutant plants. Root growth in seedlings decreased in Ws2, AtBRI1, and 3 independent OsBRI1 transgenic seedlings and had an almost complete lack of response to brassinolide in the bri1-5 mutant. In conclusion, OsBRI1, an orthologous gene of AtBRI1, can mediate normal BR signaling for plant growth and development in Arabidopsis thaliana.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
• /
• v.19 no.5
• /
• pp.441-449
• /
• 2015

Flavonoids are plant pigments that have been demonstrated to exert various pharmacological effects including anti-cancer, anti-diabetic, anti-atherosclerotic, anti-bacterial, and anti-inflammatory activities. However, the molecular mechanisms in terms of exact target proteins of flavonoids are not fully elucidated yet. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the anti-inflammatory mechanism of scutellarein (SCT), a flavonoid isolated from Erigeron breviscapus, Clerodendrum phlomidis and Oroxylum indicum Vent that have been traditionally used to treat various inflammatory diseases in China and Brazil. For this purpose, a nitric oxide (NO) assay, polymerase chain reaction (PCR), nuclear fractionation, immunoblot analysis, a kinase assay, and an overexpression strategy were employed. Scutellarein significantly inhibited NO production in a dose-dependent manner and reduced the mRNA expression levels of inducible NO synthase (iNOS) and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-${\alpha}$ in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-activated RAW264.7 cells. In addition, SCT also dampened nuclear factor (NF)-${\kappa}B$-driven expression of a luciferase reporter gene upon transfection of a TIR-domain-containing adapter-inducing interferon-${\beta}$ (TRIF) construct into Human embryonic kidney 293 (HEK 293) cells; similarly, NF-${\kappa}B$ nuclear translocation was inhibited by SCT. Moreover, the phosphorylation levels of various upstream signaling enzymes involved in NF-${\kappa}B$ activation were decreased by SCT treatment in LPS-treated RAW264.7 cells. Finally, SCT strongly inhibited Src kinase activity and also inhibited the autophosphorylation of overexpressed Src. Therefore, our data suggest that SCT can block the inflammatory response by directly inhibiting Src kinase activity linked to NF-${\kappa}B$ activation.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.25 no.8
• /
• pp.1227-1233
• /
• 2015

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) plays a key role in angiogenesis through binding to its specific receptors, which mainly occurs to VEGF receptor 2 (VEGFR-2), a kinase insert domain-containing receptor. Therefore, the disruption of VEGFR-2 signaling provides a promising therapeutic approach for the treatment of cancer by inhibiting abnormal or tumorinduced angiogenesis. To explore this potential, we expressed the catalytic domain of VEGFR-2 (VEGFR-2-CD) as a soluble active kinase in Escherichia coli. The recombinant protein was purified and the VEGFR-2-CD activity was investigated. The obtained VEGFR-2-CD showed autophosphorylation activity and phosphate transfer activity comparable to the commercial enzyme. Furthermore, the IC₅₀ value of known VEGFR-2 inhibitor was determined using the purified VEGFR-2-CD. These results indicated a possibility for functional and economical VEGFR-2-CD expression in E. coli to use for inhibitor screening.

• The Journal of Natural Sciences
• /
• v.9 no.1
• /
• pp.1-7
• /
• 1997

Calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMK-II) is responsible for the phosphorylation of proteins involved in various cellular functions. Since the level of intracellular calcium ($Ca_2+$) oscillate during the cell cycle, it is expected that the activity of CaMK-II is also dependent on the cell cycle. The kinase activity in NIH3T3 cells which were arrested at or released from certain phase of the cell cycle was measured and compared to that in the normally growing asynchronous control cells to investigate whether the activity of this kinase is cell cycle-dependent. Cells were arrested at G0, G1, G1/S, G2/M and M phase, respectively by use of various drugs which do not have any effect on the kinase activity of CaMK-II at G0, G1, G1/s and G2/M phase was similar to that of the control cells, whereas lower at M. Calcium-independent activity of CaMK_II by autophosphorylation was higher at M and, thus, higher autonomy at M, which represented the physiologically relevant activity of CaMK-II. A similar pattern of activity change of the kinase was demonstrated during the cell cycle of synchronized cells which were released from G1 arrest. These results indicate that the activity of CaMK-11 is cell cycle-dependent and is activity during the mitosis.

• Molecules and Cells
• /
• v.24 no.2
• /
• pp.276-282
• /
• 2007

Protein phosphorylation is one of the major mechanisms by which eukaryotic cells transduce extracellular signals into intracellular responses. Calcium/calmodulin ($Ca^{2+}/CaM$)-dependent protein phosphorylation has been implicated in various cellular processes, yet little is known about $Ca^{2+}/CaM$-dependent protein kinases (CaMKs) in plants. From an Arabidopsis expression library screen using a horseradish peroxidase-conjugated soybean calmodulin isoform (SCaM-1) as a probe, we isolated a full-length cDNA clone that encodes AtCK (Arabidopsis thaliana calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase). The predicted structure of AtCK contains a serine/threonine protein kinase catalytic domain followed by a putative calmodulin-binding domain and a putative $Ca^{2+}$-binding domain. Recombinant AtCK was expressed in E. coli and bound to calmodulin in a $Ca^{2+}$-dependent manner. The ability of CaM to bind to AtCK was confirmed by gel mobility shift and competition assays. AtCK exhibited its highest levels of autophosphorylation in the presence of 3 mM $Mn^{2+}$. The phosphorylation of myelin basic protein (MBP) by AtCK was enhanced when AtCK was under the control of calcium-bound CaM, as previously observed for other $Ca^{2+}/CaM$-dependent protein kinases. In contrast to maize and tobacco CCaMKs (calcium and $Ca^{2+}/CaM$-dependent protein kinase), increasing the concentration of calmodulin to more than $3{\mu}M$ suppressed the phosphorylation activity of AtCK. Taken together our results indicate that AtCK is a novel Arabidopsis $Ca^{2+}/CaM$-dependent protein kinase which is presumably involved in CaM-mediated signaling.

• Molecules and Cells
• /
• v.28 no.5
• /
• pp.431-439
• /
• 2009

Rice Oryza sativa accelerated cell death and resistance 1 (OsACDR1) encodes a putative Raf-like mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase kinase (MAPKKK). We had previously reported upregulation of the OsACDR1 transcript by a range of environmental stimuli involved in eliciting defense-related pathways. Here we apply biochemical, gain and loss-of-function approaches to characterize OsACDR1 function in rice. The OsACDR1 protein showed autophosphorylation and possessed kinase activity. Rice plants overexpressing OsACDR1 exhibited spontaneous hypersensitive response (HR)-like lesions on leaves, upregulation of defense-related marker genes and accumulation of phenolic compounds and secondary metabolites (phytoalexins). These transgenic plants also acquired enhanced resistance to a fungal pathogen (Magnaporthe grisea) and showed inhibition of appressorial penetration on the leaf surface. In contrast, loss-of-function and RNA silenced OsACDR1 rice mutant plants showed downregulation of defense-related marker genes expressions and susceptibility to M. grisea. Furthermore, transient expression of an OsACDR1:GFP fusion protein in rice protoplast and onion epidermal cells revealed its localization to the nucleus. These results indicate that OsACDR1 plays an important role in the positive regulation of disease resistance in rice.

• Archives of Pharmacal Research
• /
• v.18 no.2
• /
• pp.90-99
• /
• 1995

The effect of protein kinase C inhibitors, sturosporine and 1-(5-isoquinolinyl sulfonyl)-2-methyl piperazine(H7) on in vitro differentiation of erythroid progenitor cells which were isolated from spleens of mice infected with the anemia-inducing strain of Friend virus were examined. Erythropoietin-mediated differentitation of erythroid progenitor cells, as determined by the incorporation of $^{59}Fe$ into protoporphyrin, was inhibited by staurosporine and H7 in a concentration -dependent manner. Scatchard analysis of the $^3H-phorbol-12$, 13-dibutyrate binding to erythroid progenitor cells revealed that at the high affinity sites the dissociation constant was 22nM and the maximum number of $^3H-phorbol-12$, 13-dibutyrate binding to erythroid progenitor cells revealed that at the high affinity sites the dissociation constant was 22nM and the maximum number of $^3H-phorbol-12$, 13-dibutyrate binding sites per cell was approximately $3.7\times10^5$. Cytosonic protein kinase C was isolated from erthroid progenitor cells and then purified by sequential column chromatogrphy. Two isoforms of protein kinase C were found. Photoaffinity labeling of the purified protein kinase C samples with $^3H-phorbol-12$12-myristate 13-acetate followed by analysis of SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and autofluorography showed radiolabeled 82-KDa pepticles. Rediolabeling of the 82-KDa peptides with $^3H-phorbol-12$myristate 13-acete was almost completely blocked by excess unlabeled phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate was almost 12-muristate 13-acetate-promoted phosphorylation with the puyrified protein kinase C samples showed that the phosphorylation of 82-KDa peptides was increased as the concentration of phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate was increased from $10^{-8}M{\;}to{\;}10^{-4}$M. In light of the findings that erythroid progenitor cells possessed an abundance of protein kinase C and that stauroporine and H7 inhibited erythroid differentiation, it seemed likely that protein kinase C would play a role in the erythroid progenitor cell development.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
• /
• v.30 no.9
• /
• pp.854-861
• /
• 1997

CYPRA 21-1 is known to be a cytokeratin 19 fragment, and it can be detected by using two specific monoclonal antibodies (KS 19-1 and BM 19-21) and can be clinically applied as a useful circulating tumor marker The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGF-R) expression was evaluated and characterized by its tyrosine protein kinase activity and by its ligand-stimulated autophosphorylation, a property shared with other peptide growth factor receptors. Autocrine or para'urine action was initiated by a growth factor, or by a transforming growth factor o, which had an extensive homology with EGP and which also stimulated tyrosine kinase activity on the EGF-R. The CYFRA 21-1 and the EGF-R levels in 30 patients with primary lung tumors were investigated. There were 24 patients with squamous cell carcinomas and 6 patients with adenocarcinomas. Specimen 5 mm3 in size were sampled at three different locations ; the main lesion, the boundary between the lesion and the unaffected tissue, and the unaffected tissue of the patients. The results were as follows 1. The CYPRA 21-1 concentration in the cancer boundary, the most malignant region,(348.6 : 89.9 ng/ml) was the lowest value. The CYFRA 21-1 concentration in unaffected tissue,(718.4$\pm$77.8 ng/ml) was higher than that in the main lesion. which had intact cellularity. 2. The EGF-R concentration in the main lesion was higher than that in the unaffected tissue, and the EGF-R concentration in a squamous cell cacinoma was higher than that in an adenocarcinoma. also, the EGF-R concentration in the cancer b undary was highest at stage 1, ll. The EGF-R concentration was higher in the main cancer lesion that in the unaffected tissue at stage 111, IV. 3. The CYFRA 21-1 was a cytoplasmic skeleton and the EGF-R was a cell-wall component; there was no correlation. In conclusion, CYFRA 21-1 was abundant in the cytoplasm but had a higher concentration in the unaffected tissue than in the main cancer lesion. The CYFRA 21-1 concentration of the tissue did not reflect the amount of cancer activity, the EGP-R was located in the cell membrane, the level of tissue that reflects cancer activity, so the main cancer lesion had a higher concentration than the unaffected tissue. CYFRA 21-1 is not a useful tumor maker at the tissue level. Because the EGF-R concentration re(looted the cancer activity, its a useful tumor marker for lung cancer.