Autophosphorylation

Insulin Receptor. Figure 1 Structure and function of the insulin receptor. Binding of insulin to the a-subunits (yellow) leads to activation of the intracellular tyrosine kinase ((3-subunit) by autophosphorylation. The insulin receptor substrates (IRS) bind via a phospho-tyrosine binding domain to phosphorylated tyrosine residues in the juxtamembrane domain of the (3-subunit. The receptor tyrosine kinase then phosphorylates specific tyrosine motifs (YMxM) within the IRS. These tyrosine phosphorylated motifs serve as docking sites for some adaptor proteins with SRC homology 2 (SH2) domains like the regulatory subunit of PI 3-kinase. 

Concanavalin A is a plant lectin from the jack bean (Canavalia ensiformis) which binds with high affinity to mannose residues of glycoproteins. Concanavalin A is known to stimulate the tyrosine kinase activity of the INSR (3-subunit with consecutive activation of kinases downstream the insulin receptor (IRS, PI 3-kinase). It is believed that Concanavalin A stimulates the activation and autophosphorylation of the INSR kinase through aggregation of the receptor, although the precise mechanism of action is unclear. 

The catalytic cycle of the Na+/K+-ATPase can be described by juxtaposition of distinct reaction sequences that are associated with two different conformational states termed Ei and E2 [1]. In the first step, the Ei conformation is that the enzyme binds Na+ and ATP with very high affinity (KD values of 0.19-0.26 mM and 0.1-0.2 pM, respectively) (Fig. 1A, Step 1). After autophosphorylation by ATP at the aspartic acid within the sequence DKTGS/T the enzyme occludes the 3 Na+ ions (Ei-P(3Na+) Fig. la, Step 2) and releases them into the extracellular space after attaining the E2-P 3Na+ conformation characterized by low affinity for Na+ (Kq5 = 14 mM) (Fig. la, Step 3). The following E2-P conformation binds 2 K+ ions with high affinity (KD approx. 0.1 mM Fig. la, Step 4). The binding of K+ to the enzyme induces a spontaneous dephosphorylation of the E2-P conformation and leads to the occlusion of 2 K+ ions (E2(2K+) Fig. la, Step 5). Intracellular ATP increases the extent of the release of K+ from the E2(2K+) conformation (Fig. la, Step 6) and thereby also the return of the E2(2K+) conformation to the EiATPNa conformation. The affinity ofthe E2(2K+) conformation for ATP, with a K0.5 value of 0.45 mM, is very low. 

An early step in Fak activation is a high stoichiometry autophosphorylation of a tyrosine residue (Y397)... 

The current understanding on activation of Tec kinases fits into a two-step model. In the first step an intramolecular interaction between the SH3 domain and aproline-rich region in the TH domain is disrupted by binding ofthe PH domain to phosphoinositides, G protein subunits, or the FERM domain of Fak. These interactions lead to conformational changes of Tec and translocation to the cytoplasmic membrane where, in a second step, Src kinases phosphorylate a conserved tyrosine residue in the catalytic domain thereby increasing Tec kinase activity. Autophosphorylation of a tyrosine residue in the SH3 domain further prevents the inhibitory intramolecular interaction resulting in a robust Tec kinase activation. 

Like all immunoreceptor family members, FceRI lacks intrinsic tyrosine kinase activity. IgE and antigen-induced crosshnking of FceRI initiates a complex series of phosphate transfer events via the activation of non-receptor Src, Syk and Tec family protein tyrosine kinases (fig. 1). The Src family kinase Lyn, which associates with the FceRI p subunit in mast cells, transphosphorylates neighboring FceRI ITAMs after receptor aggregation [7, 26]. Once phosphorylated, the p chain ITAM binds to the SH2 domain of additional Lyn molecules, while the phosphorylated y chain ITAM recruits Syk to the receptor complex, where it is activated by both autophosphorylation and phosphorylation by Lyn [2, 7,15, 26]. 

PETERSON G and BARNES s (1993) Genistein and hiochanin A inhibit the growth of hiunan prostate cancer cells but not epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine autophosphorylation. Prostate. 22 (4) 335-45. 

Rottapel, R., Reedijk, M., Williams, D. E., Lyman, S. D., Anderson, D. M., Pawson, T., and Bernstein, A. (1991). The Steel/W transduction pathway kit autophosphorylation and its association with a unique subset of cytoplasmic signaling proteins is induced by the Steel factor. Mol. Cell. Biol. 11 3043-3051. 

Seger, R., Ahn, N. G., Boulton, T. G., Yanopoulos, G., Panayotatos, N., Radzziejewska, E., Ericsson, L., Bratlien, R. L., Cobb, M. H., and Krebs, E. G. (1991). Microtubule-associated protein 2 kinases, ERK1 and ERK2, undergo autophosphorylation on both tyrosine and threonine residues implications for their mechanism of activation. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USASS 6142-6146. 

All RTKs contain between one and three tyrosines in the kinase activation loop, which is composed of subdomains VII and VIII of the protein kinase catalytic core. Phosphorylation of these tyrosines has been shown to be critical for stimulation of catalytic activity and biological function for a number of RTKs, including insulin receptor, FGF receptor, VEGF receptor, PDGF receptor, Met (hepatocyte growth factor receptor), and TrkA (NGF receptor). A major exception is the EGF receptor, for which autophosphorylation of a conserved tyrosine in the activation loop does not seem to be involved in signaling. Substitution of tyrosine with phenylalanine has no effect on RTK activity or downstream signals. 

In principle, RTK autophosphorylation could occur in cis (within a receptor monomer) or in trans (between two receptors in a dimer). In the first case, ligand binding would cause a change in receptor conformation that would facilitate c/ s-autophosphorylation of tyrosine residues located within or outside the PTK domain. In the second case, no conformational change must occur upon dimerization. The simple proximity effect would provide sufficient opportunity for trans-phosphorylation of tyrosines in the cytoplasmic domain by a second RTK. 

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