Sak serine-threonine kinase acts as an effector of Tec tyrosine kinase.

The murine sak gene encodes a putative serine-threonine kinase which is homologous to the members of the Plk/Polo family. Although Sak protein is presumed to be involved in cell growth mechanism, efforts have failed to demonstrate its kinase activity. Little has been, therefore, elucidated how Sak is regulated and how Sak contributes to cell proliferation. Tec is a cytoplasmic protein-tyrosine kinase (PTK) which becomes activated by the stimulation of cytokine receptors, lymphocyte surface antigens, heterotrimeric G protein-linked receptors, and integrins. To clarify the in vivo function of Tec, we have tried to isolate the second messengers of Tec by using the yeast two-hybrid screening. One of such Tec-binding proteins turned out to be Sak. In human kidney 293 cells, Sak became tyrosine-phosphorylated by Tec, and the serine-threonine kinase activity of Sak was detected only under the presence of Tec, suggesting Sak to be an effector molecule of Tec. In addition, Tec activity efficiently protects Sak from the "PEST" sequence-dependent proteolysis. Internal deletion of the PEST sequences led to the stabilization of Sak proteins, and expression of these mutants acted suppressive to cell growth. Our data collectively supports a novel role of Sak acting in the PTK-mediated signaling pathway.

Molecular cloning of a docking protein, BRDG1, that acts downstream of the Tec tyrosine kinase.

Tec, Btk, Itk, Bmx, and Txk constitute the Tec family of protein tyrosine kinases (PTKs), a family with the distinct feature of containing a pleckstrin homology (PH) domain. Tec acts in signaling pathways triggered by the B cell antigen receptor (BCR), cytokine receptors, integrins, and receptor-type PTKs. Although upstream regulators of Tec family kinases are relatively well characterized, little is known of the downstream effectors of these enzymes. The yeast two-hybrid system has identified several proteins that interact with the kinase domain of Tec, one of which is now revealed to be a previously unknown docking protein termed BRDG1 (BCR downstream signaling 1). BRDG1 contains a proline-rich motif, a PH domain, and multiple tyrosine residues that are potential target sites for Src homology 2 domains. In 293 cells expressing recombinant BRDG1 and various PTKs, Tec and Pyk2, but not Btk, Bmx, Lyn, Syk, or c-Abl, induced marked phosphorylation of BRDG1 on tyrosine residues. BRDG1 was also phosphorylated by Tec directly in vitro. Efficient phosphorylation of BRDG1 by Tec required the PH and SH2 domains as well as the kinase domain of the latter. Furthermore, BRDG1 was shown to participate in a positive feedback loop by increasing the activity of Tec. BRDG1 transcripts are abundant in the human B cell line Ramos, and the endogenous protein underwent tyrosine phosphorylation in response to BCR stimulation. BRDG1 thus appears to function as a docking protein acting downstream of Tec in BCR signaling.

Grb10/GrbIR as an in vivo substrate of Tec tyrosine kinase.

BACKGROUND: Tec is a member of the recently emerging subfamily among nonreceptor protein-tyrosine kinases (PTKs). Although many members of this family have been shown to be involved in a wide range of cytokine-mediated signalling systems, the molecular mechanism by which they exert in vivo effects remains obscure. To gain insights into the downstream pathways of Tec, we here looked for Tec-interacting proteins (TIPs) by using the yeast two-hybrid screening. RESULTS: One of TIPs turned out to be Grb10/GrbIR, which carries one pleckstrin homology domain and one Src homology 2 domain. Grb10/GrbIR was known to bind receptor PTKs in a ligand-dependent fashion, but not to be phosphorylated on tyrosine residues. In a transient expression system in human kidney 293 cells, however, Grb10/GrbIR becomes profoundly tyrosine-phosphorylated by Tec, but not by Syk, Jak2 or insulin receptor. We also reveal that expression of Grb10/GrbIR suppresses the cytokine-driven and Tec-driven activation of the c-fos promoter. CONCLUSION: Our results indicate a novel role of Grb10/GrbIR as an effector molecule to a subset of nonreceptor PTKs.