Transcription activator Phosphorylation

CREB stands for cyclic-AMP response element (CRE) binding protein and is a transcription factor. When phosphorylated by cyclic AMP- and cyclic GMP-dependent Protein Kinases or other protein kinases it binds to gene promoters that contain a specific binding site. After binding, the respective transcription activity is modulated. 

The transcriptional activity of NRs is also modulated by various posttranslational modifications of the receptors themselves or of their coregulatory proteins. Phosphorylation, as well as several other types of modification, such as acetylation, SUMOylation, ubiquitinylation, and methylation, has been reported to modulate the functions of NRs, potentially constituting an important cellular integration mechanism. In addition to the modifications of the receptors themselves, such modifications have been reported for their coactivators and corepressors. Therefore, these different modes of regulation reveal an unexpected complexity of the dynamics of NR-mediated transcription. 

PRs also interact with other signaling pathways, which can, e.g., be regulated by phosphorylation. Independent of transcriptional activation of PR, progestins can activate cytoplasmic signaling molecules including SRC and downstream MAP kinase in mammalian cells via interaction by a specific polyproline motif in the N-terminal domain of PR. 

The core unit of the chromatin, the nucleosome, consists of histones arranged as an octamer consisting of a (H3/ H4)2-tetramer complexed with two histone H2A/H2B dimers. Accessibility to DNA-binding proteins (for replication, repair, or transcription) is achieved by posttranslational modifications of the amino-termini of the histones, the histone tails phosphorylation, acetylation, methylation, ubiquitination, and sumoyla-tion. Especially acetylation of histone tails has been linked to transcriptional activation, leading to weakened interaction of the core complexes with DNA and subsequently to decondensation of chromatin. In contrast, deacetylation leads to transcriptional repression. As mentioned above, transcriptional coactivators either possess HAT activity or recruit HATs. HDACs in turn act as corepressors. 

Phosphorylation of HSF substantially enhances the transcriptional activity of HS gene expression which may be up to 100-fold of basal levels after HSFl binds to the promoter element. Heat shock will increase the C-terminal-domain-kinase activity in cell extracts, and this action may enhance the activity of RNA polymerase II that is bound to HS genes (Legagneux et al., 1990). Whether this kinase activity also affects HSFl phosphorylation is not known, but increased HS gene expression appears to occur as long as HSFl is bound to the promoter region. The CTD kinase complex contains multiple proteins, and it is quite possible that one or more of these proteins is also regulated by stress. 

Figure 8.3 Schematic representation of the general domain structure of a STAT protein. A conserved ( C or con ) domain is located at the N-terminus, followed by the DNA-binding domain (D). Y represents a short se-guence that contains the tyrosine residue phosphorylated by the Janus kinase. The carboxy terminus domain (Tr) represents a transcriptional activation domain...

The details of the mechanism by which CREB influences gene expression are becoming increasingly understood (Fig. 23-9) [62, 63]. In the basal, or unstimulated, state, CREB is bound to its CREs but does not alter transcriptional rates under most circumstances. Stimulation of a cell by a variety of first messengers leads to the phosphorylation and activation of CREB, which then leads to the regulation of gene transcription. Such phosphorylation of CREB occurs on a single serine residue, serine 133, and can be mediated by one of several protein kinases. 

Stimulation of a cell by first messengers that increase cellular Ca2+ concentrations similarly activates CREB (Fig. 23-9). This appears to occur via the phosphorylation of CREB on serine 133 by a CaMK, probably CaMKIV as well as, possibly, CaMKI. It remains to be established whether the activated kinase translocates to the nucleus, by analogy with the catalytic subunit of the cAMP kinase, or whether elevated Ca2+ signals enter the nucleus and activate the kinase already there. Interestingly, phosphorylation of CREB on a distinct serine residue, serine 142, by CaMKII appears to inhibit the transcriptional activity of CREB in vitro, although whether this inhibitory effect occurs in vivo is unknown. 

Regulation of the proteic activity by means of phosphorylation and dephosphorylation is well known. In the case of nuclear receptors, it has been descr ib ed that the state of phosphorylation affects not only their affinity for the hormone, but also their transcription activity. The process of phosphorylation seems to occur after the receptor binds with the hormone and frees the hsp90, which is a phosphoprotein (Mester et al. 1995). 

Ali S, Metzger D, Bornert JM, Chambon P (1993) Modulation of transcriptional activation by ligand-dependent phosphorylation of the human oestrogen receptor A/B region. EMBOJ 12 1153... 

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