• Molecules and Cells
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• 제44권3호
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• pp.179-185
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• 2021

Vancomycin response regulator (VncR) is a pneumococcal response regulator of the VncRS two-component signal transduction system (TCS) of Streptococcus pneumoniae. VncRS regulates bacterial autolysis and vancomycin resistance. VncR contains two different functional domains, the N-terminal receiver domain and C-terminal effector domain. Here, we investigated VncR C-terminal DNA binding domain (VncRc) structure using a crystallization approach. Crystallization was performed using the micro-batch method. The crystals diffracted to a 1.964 Å resolution and belonged to space group P212121. The crystal unit-cell parameters were a = 25.71 Å, b = 52.97 Å, and c = 60.61 Å. The structure of VncRc had a helix-turn-helix motif highly similar to the response regulator PhoB of Escherichia coli. In isothermal titration calorimetry and size exclusion chromatography results, VncR formed a complex with VncS, a sensor histidine kinase of pneumococcal TCS. Determination of VncR structure will provide insight into the mechanism by how VncR binds to target genes.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• 제60권2호
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• pp.187-193
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• 2006

배 경 : 결핵균의 성장 속도가 늦은 이유가 mammalian cell이나 대장균에 비해 결핵균 AK의 매우 낮은 활성도에 의한 것이라는 추측으로부터 AK1과 유사한 촉매능을 나타내는 AKmt 돌연변이 유전자와 human muscle-type AK 합성 유전자(AK1)를 각각 Mycobacterium/E.coli 발현벡터에 재조합(pMVAKmtDM, pEMAK1)하여 성장 속도가 매우 느린 BCG에 형질전환함으로써 이들 단백질들의 촉매능에 의한 성장 속도 변화가 일어나는지를 확인하고자 하였다. 방 법 : Human AK1의 촉매 활성도와 유사하도록 결핵균 AK (AKmt)유전자의 ATPbd와 LID domain을 돌연변이하여 제조한 유전자(AKmtDM)와 human muscle-type adenylate kinase 합성 유전자(AK1)를 Mycobacterium/E.coli 발현벡터에 클로닝하여 재조합 BCG를 제조하였고, 이들 재조합 BCG와 BCG Pasteur $1173P_2$ (wild-type)를 7H9 액체배지에 접종하여 2-3 일 간격으로 $A_{600}$ 값을 측정하였다. 결 과 : 재조합 BCG의 성장 속도는 Wild-type BCG의 성장 속도에 비해 변화가 없었다. 결 론 : 결핵균 adenylate kinase의 정확한 기능은 알 수 없으나, adenylate kinase의 촉매 활성도의 증가는 BCG의 성장 속도에는 영향을 주지 않는 것으로 판단된다.

• BMB Reports
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• 제43권4호
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• pp.233-244
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• 2010

Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disease, and 5-10% of the PD cases are genetically inherited as familial PD (FPD). LRRK2 (leucine-rich repeat kinase 2) was first reported in 2004 as a gene corresponding to PARK8, an autosomal gene whose dominant mutations cause familial PD. LRRK2 contains both active kinase and GTPase domains as well as protein-protein interaction motifs such as LRR (leucine-rich repeat) and WD40. Most pathogenic LRRK2 mutations are located in either the GTPase or kinase domain, implying important roles for the enzymatic activities in PD pathogenic mechanisms. In comparison to other PD causative genes such as parkin and PINK1, LRRK2 exhibits two important features. One is that LRRK2's mutations (especially the G2019S mutation) were observed in sporadic as well as familial PD patients. Another is that, among the various PD-causing genes, pathological characteristics observed in patients carrying LRRK2 mutations are the most similar to patients with sporadic PD. Because of these two observations, LRRK2 has been intensively investigated for its pathogenic mechanism (s) and as a target gene for PD therapeutics. In this review, the general biochemical and molecular features of LRRK2, the recent results of LRRK2 studies and LRRK2's therapeutic potential as a PD target gene will be discussed.

• Molecules and Cells
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• 제21권1호
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• pp.21-28
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• 2006

The interferon-induced, double-stranded RNA (dsRNA)-dependent protein kinase PKR plays a key role in interferon-mediated host defense against viral infection, and is implicated in cellular transformation and apoptosis. We have isolated a cDNA of simian PKR encoding a product with 83% amino acid identity to the human homolog and showed that PKR expression is significantly attenuated in the Vero E6 African green monkey kidney cells devoid of type I interferon genes. A variant form of PKR lacking the exon 12 in the kinase domain is produced in these cells, presumably from an alternatively spliced transcript. Unlike wild type PKR, the variant protein named PKR-${\Delta}E12$ is incapable of auto-phosphorylation and phosphorylation of eIF2-${\alpha}$, indicating that the kinase sub-domains III and IV embedded in exon 12 are indispensable for catalytic function. PKR-${\Delta}E12$ had no dominant negative effect but was weakly phosphorylated in trans by wild type PKR.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• 제25권8호
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• pp.1227-1233
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• 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.

• 미생물학회지
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• 제54권3호
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• pp.208-213
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• 2018

Nuclear factor kappa B ($NF{\kappa}B$)의 활성화는 염증을 일으킨다. 이 때, inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS)가 발현된다. 우리 선행 연구에 의하면 Bacillus licheniformis B1에 의해 제조된 발효대두에 있는 septapeptide (GVAWWMY)가 대식세포에서 iNOS mRNA 발현과 NO 생산을 억제하였다. 본 연구에서 septapeptide의 처리가 $I{\kappa}B{\alpha}$ ($NF{\kappa}B$ 억제 단백질)의 분해를 억제하여 LPS에 의해 유도되는 $NF{\kappa}B$의 활성화를 억제함을 확인했다. 분자 docking에 의해 septapeptide가 ${\kappa}B$ kinase ${\beta}$ ($IKK{\beta}$)에 부착하여 $I{\kappa}B{\alpha}$의 인산화를 방해할 가능성이 있다. Septapeptide는 높은 친화도로(-8.7 kcal/Mol) $IKK{\beta}$의 kinase domain에 부착해서 kinase 활성에 크게 영향을 미칠 수 있다.

• Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging
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• 제42권3호
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• pp.185-191
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• 2008

While indirect targeting strategies using reporter-genes are taking center stage in current molecular imaging research, another vital strategy has long involved direct imaging of specific receptors using radiolabeled ligands. Recently, there is renewal of immense interest in this area with particular attention to the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), a transmembrane glycoprotein critically involved in the regulation of many cellular functions and malignancies. Recently, two novel classes of EGFR-targeting anticancer drugs have entered clinical trials with great expectations. These are monoclonal antibodies such as cetuximab that target the extracellular domain, and small molecule tyrosine kinase inhibitors such as gefitinib (lressa) and erlotinib (Tarceva) that target the catalytic domain of the receptor. However, early results have showed disappointing survival benefits, disclosing a major challenge for this therapeutic strategy; namely, the need to identify tumors that are most likely to respond to the agents. To address this important clinical issue, several noninvasive imaging techniques are under investigation including radiolabeled probes based on small molecule tyrosine kinase inhibitors, anti-EGFR antibodies, and EGF peptides. This review describes the current status, limitations, and future prospects in the development of radiotracer methods for EGFR imaging.

• BMB Reports
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• 제43권3호
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• pp.199-204
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• 2010

The protein p104 was first isolated as a binding partner of the Src homology domain of phospholipase C$\gamma$1, and has been shown to associate with p85$\alpha$, Grb2. The ectopic expression of p104 reduced cellular growth rate, which was also achieved with the overexpression of only the proline-rich region of p104. The proline-rich region of p104 has been found to inhibit the colony formation of platelet-derived growth factor BB-stimulated NIH3T3 cells and MCF7 cancer cells on soft agar. Mutagenesis analysis showed that the second and third proline-rich regions are essential for growth control, as well as for interaction with p85$\alpha$. Overexpression of p104 increased the level of the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor, $p27^{Kip1}$, and inhibited the activity of phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K). In summary, p104 interacts with p85$\alpha$ and is involved in the regulation of $p27^{Kip1}$ expression for the reduction of cellular proliferation.

• BMB Reports
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• 제47권11호
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• pp.631-636
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• 2014

Aurora-A is a centrosome-localized serine/threonine kinase that is overexpressed in multiple human cancers. We previously reported an intramolecular inhibitory regulation of Aurora-A between its N-terminal regulatory domain (Nt, amino acids [aa] 1-128) and the C-terminal catalytic domain (Cd, aa 129-403). Here, we demonstrate that although both Aurora-A mutants (AurA-K250G and AurA-D294G/Y295G) lacked interactions between the Nt and Cd, they also failed to interact with Ajuba, an essential activator of Aurora-A, leading to loss of kinase activity. Additionally, overexpression of either of the mutants resulted in centrosome amplification and mitotic spindle formation defects. Both mutants were also able to cause G2/M arrest and apoptosis. These results indicate that both K250 and D294/Y295 are critical for direct interaction between Aurora-A and Ajuba and the function of the Aurora-A complex in cell cycle progression.

• BMB Reports
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• 제43권11호
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• pp.738-743
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• 2010

The c-Jun $NH_2$-terminal kinase (JNK) signaling pathway participates in many physiological functions. In the current study we reported the cloning and characterization of five novel JNK2 transcript variants, which were designated as $JNK2\alpha3$, $JNK2\alpha4$, $JNK2\beta3$, $JNK2\gamma1$ and $JNK2\gamma2$, respectively. Among them, $JNK2\alpha4$ and $JNK2\gamma2$ are potential non-coding RNA because they contain pre-mature stop codons. Both $JNK2\alpha3$ and $JNK2\beta3$ contain an intact kinase domain, and both encode a protein product of 46 kDa, the same as those of $JNK2\alpha1$ and $JNK2\beta1$. $JNK2\gamma1$ contains a disrupted kinase domain and it showed a disable function. When over-expressed in mammalian cells, $JNK2\alpha3$ showed higher activity on AP-1 than that of $JNK2\beta3$ and $JNK2\gamma1$. Furthermore, $JNK2\alpha3$ and $JNK2\beta3$ showed different levels of substrate phosphorylation, although they both could promote the proliferation of 293T cells. Our results further demonstrate that JNK2 isoforms preferentially target different substrates and may regulate the expression of various target genes.