Activation of RET as a dominant transforming gene by germline mutations of MEN2A and MEN2B.

Multiple endocrine neoplasia types 2A and 2B (MEN2A and MEN2B) and familial medullary thyroid carcinoma are dominantly inherited cancer syndromes. All three syndromes are associated with mutations in RET, which encodes a receptor-like tyrosine kinase. The altered RET alleles were shown to be transforming genes in NIH 3T3 cells as a consequence of constitutive activation of the RET kinase. The MEN2A mutation resulted in RET dimerization at steady state, whereas the MEN2B mutation altered RET catalytic properties both quantitatively and qualitatively. Oncogenic conversion of RET in these neoplastic syndromes establishes germline transmission of dominant transforming genes in human cancer.

Alternative splicing of the platelet-derived growth factor A-chain transcript occurs in normal as well as tumor cells and is conserved among mammalian species.

Using a polymerase chain reaction approach, we have analyzed the alternative usage of the platelet-derived growth factor A-chain exon 6 in mRNA from various cell types. The results show that this sequence is utilized in a small fraction of the mRNA molecules in normal as well as transformed cells and that this phenomenon is conserved among mammalian species.

eps15, a novel tyrosine kinase substrate, exhibits transforming activity.

An expression cloning method which allows direct isolation of cDNAs encoding substrates for tyrosine kinases was applied to the study of the epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor (EGFR) signaling pathway. A previously undescribed cDNA was isolated and designated eps15. The structural features of the predicted eps15 gene product allow its subdivision into three domains. Domain I contains signatures of a regulatory domain, including a candidate tyrosine phosphorylation site and EF-hand-type calcium-binding domains. Domain II presents the characteristic heptad repeats of coiled-coil rod-like proteins, and domain III displays a repeated aspartic acid-proline-phenylalanine motif similar to a consensus sequence of several methylases. Antibodies specific for the eps15 gene product recognize two proteins: a major species of 142 kDa and a minor component of 155 kDa, both of which are phosphorylated on tyrosine following EGFR activation by EGF in vivo. EGFR is also able to directly phosphorylate the eps15 product in vitro. In addition, phosphorylation of the eps15 gene product in vivo is relatively receptor specific, since the erbB-2 kinase phosphorylates it very inefficiently. Finally, overexpression of eps15 is sufficient to transform NIH 3T3 cells, thus suggesting that the eps15 gene product is involved in the regulation of mitogenic signals.

Constitutive phosphorylation of eps8 in tumor cell lines: relevance to malignant transformation.

eps8, a recently identified tyrosine kinase substrate, has been shown to augment epidermal growth factor (EGF) responsiveness, implicating it in EGF receptor (EGFR)-mediated mitogenic signaling. We investigated the status of eps8 phosphorylation in normal and transformed cells and the role of eps8 in transformation. In NIH 3T3 cells overexpressing EGFR (NIH-EGFR), eps8 becomes rapidly phosphorylated upon EGF stimulation. At receptor-saturating doses of EGF, approximately 30% of the eps8 pool is tyrosine phosphorylated. Under physiological conditions of activation (i.e., at low receptor occupancy), corresponding to the 50% effective dose of EGF for mitogenesis, approximately 3 to 4% of the eps8 contains phosphotyrosine. In human tumor cell lines, we detected constitutive tyrosine phosphorylation of eps8, with a stoichiometry (approximately 5%) similar to that associated with potent mitogenic response in NIH-EGFR cells. Overexpression of eps8 was able to transform NIH 3T3 cells under limiting conditions of activation of the EGFR pathway. Concomitant tyrosine phosphorylation of eps8 and shc, but not of rasGAP, phospholipase C-gamma, and eps15, was frequently detected in tumor cells. This suggested that eps8 and shc might be part of a pathway which is preferentially selected in some tumors. Cooperation between these two transducers was further indicated by the finding of their in vivo association. This association was, at least in part, dependent on recognition of shc by the SH3 domain of eps8. Our results indicate that eps8 is physiologically part of the EGFR-activated signaling and that its alterations can contribute to the malignant phenotype.

An epidermal growth factor receptor/ret chimera generates mitogenic and transforming signals: evidence for a ret-specific signaling pathway.

A chimeric expression vector which encoded for a molecule encompassing the extracellular domain of the epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor (EGFR) and the intracellular domain of the ret kinase (EGFR/ret chimera) was generated. Upon ectopic expression in mammalian cells, the EGFR/ret chimera was correctly synthesized and transported to the cell surface, where it was shown capable of binding EGF and transducing an EGF-dependent signal intracellularly. Thus, the EGFR/ret chimera allows us to study the biological effects and biochemical activities of the ret kinase under controlled conditions of activation. Comparative analysis of the growth-promoting activity of the EGFR/ret chimera expressed in fibroblastic or hematopoietic cells revealed a biological phenotype clearly distinguishable from that of the EGFR, indicating that the two kinases couple with mitogenic pathways which are different to some extent. Analysis of biochemical pathways implicated in the transduction of mitogenic signals also evidenced significant differences between the ret kinase and other receptor tyrosine kinases. Thus, the sum of our results indicates the existence of a ret-specific pathway of mitogenic signaling.

Ret-mediated mitogenesis requires Src kinase activity.

The proto-oncogene RET encodes a transmembrane growth neurotrophic receptor with tyrosine kinase (TK) activity. RET mutations are associated with several human neoplastic and nonneoplastic diseases, including thyroid papillary carcinoma, multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2 syndromes, and Hirschsprung's disease. Activation of receptor TKs results in the binding and activation of downstream signaling proteins, among which are nonreceptor TKs of the Src family. To test the involvement of c-Src in Ret-mediated signaling, we measured the levels of c-Src activity in NIH3T3 cells coexpressing Ret and the accessory GFR alpha-1 receptor or an epidermal growth factor receptor/Ret chimeric receptor when the cells were stimulated by glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor or epidermal growth factor, respectively. Ret stimulation resulted in the activation of c-Src. We also measured the levels of Src kinase activity in cell lines expressing isoforms of the Ret receptor activated by different mutations. These cells showed higher Src kinase activity than the normal counterpart. Furthermore, we show that Ret is able to associate with the SH2 domain of Src in a phosphotyrosine-dependent fashion. Microinjection of a kinase inactive mutant of c-Src blocked Ret-mediated mitogenic effect. These experiments demonstrate that activated Ret is able to bind and stimulate c-Src kinase and that Src activation is essential for the mitogenic activity of Ret.

RN-tre specifically binds to the SH3 domain of eps8 with high affinity and confers growth advantage to NIH3T3 upon carboxy-terminal truncation.

We isolated a cDNA encoding a protein, RN-tre, which shows homology to the N-terminus of the tre oncogene product and has SH3-binding ability as well as an evolutionarily conserved domain, termed TrH, with protein-binding ability in vitro. In the present study, we identify the product of the RN-tre gene as a 97-100 kDa protein. We demonstrate stable association in vivo and in vitro between RN-tre and eps8, mediated by the SH3 domain of the latter. In vitro, RN-tre displayed remarkable preference for binding to the eps8-SH3, as compared to eight other SH3s. The Kd for the in vitro interaction between RN-tre and eps8-SH3 was between 10(-8) and 10(-7) M. A role for RN-tre in cell proliferation was suggested by the finding that a C-terminal truncated mutant was able to confer proliferative advantage and reduced serum-requirement to NIH3T3 fibroblasts. Finally, comparison of the structure and biological activities of RN-tre and of the tre oncogene product, provided insight into the mechanism of oncogenic activation of tre.

RN-tre identifies a family of tre-related proteins displaying a novel potential protein binding domain.

Eps8 is a recently identified SH3-containing substrate for tyrosine kinase receptors. To understand the role of eps8 in receptor-mediated signaling, we cloned cDNAs encoding proteins that bind to its SH3 domain. One of these cDNAs predicts the synthesis of an 828 amino acid protein with homology to the N-terminal region of the tre oncogene. We designated this protein RN-tre for Related to the N-terminus of tre. RN-tre is ubiquitously expressed and maps to 10p13, a region known to be involved in translocations in various leukemias. In addition, a 10p13 monosomy syndrome, characterized by developmental alterations, has been reported. The regional homology between RN-tre and tre, which is limited to their N-terminal portion, prompted us to investigate the origin of the tre oncogene transcriptional unit. We were able to show that tre is the fusion product of a 5' genetic element, homologous to RN-tre and a 3' element, encoding a de-ubiquinating enzyme. Moreover, we identified, within the N-terminus of RN-tre and tre, a domain (named TrH, for Tre Homology), which is conserved within several proteins from yeast to mammals and has protein-binding properties in vitro.

Isolation and identification of two proto-oncogene products related to c-fgr and fyn in a tyrosine-protein-kinase fraction of rat spleen.

TPK-III, a tyrosine-protein-kinase fraction previously isolated from rat spleen [Brunati, A. M. & Pinna, L. A. (1988) Eur. J. Biochem. 172, 451-457] has been further purified and resolved by Mono-Q FPLC into two homogeneous compounds, Q1 and Q2, with molecular mass approximately 52 kDa, exhibiting high specific activities for phosphate incorporation into the phosphoacceptor substrate poly(Glu80Tyr20) (1194 nmol.min-1 x mg-1 and 579 nmol.min-1 x mg-1, respectively). Both Q1 and Q2 appear to be scr-related enzymes since they are readily recognised by anti-SEEP serum raised against the highly conserved segment at positions 330-345 of p60c-scr. Q1, but not Q2, interacts with a specific antibody raised against the N-terminal segment of p55c-fgr. Microsequence analysis of tryptic fragments generated from Q1 revealed five peptides which exactly overlap the expected segments of p55c-fgr. Two of these peptides were not entirely conserved in any of the other src-related tyrosine protein kinases. A sixth fragment is very similar, albeit not identical, to the C-terminus of p55c-fgr. Microsequence analysis of two tryptic fragments from the other TPK-III fraction, Q2, provided the sequences FQILNSSE and LTTQETGYIPSNY, which are identical to two segments of fyn not entirely conserved in any of the other src-related tyrosine protein kinases. These results provide evidence that the spleen tyrosine-protein-kinase fraction, conventionally designated TPK-III, is composed of products from two proto-oncogenes, one of which corresponds to fyn, while the other is either identical or very closely related to c-fgr.

UBPY: a growth-regulated human ubiquitin isopeptidase.

The ubiquitin pathway has been implicated in the regulation of the abundance of proteins that control cell growth and proliferation. We have identified and characterized a novel human ubiquitin isopeptidase, UBPY, which both as a recombinant protein and upon immunoprecipitation from cell extracts is able to cleave linear or isopeptide-linked ubiquitin chains. UBPY accumulates upon growth stimulation of starved human fibroblasts, and its levels decrease in response to growth arrest induced by cell-cell contact. Inhibition of UBPY accumulation by antisense plasmid microinjection prevents fibroblasts from entering S-phase in response to serum stimulation. By increasing or decreasing the cellular abundance of UBPY or by overexpressing a catalytic site mutant, we detect substantial changes in the total pattern of protein ubiquitination, which correlate stringently with cell proliferation. Our results suggest that UBPY plays a role in regulating the overall function of the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway. Affecting the function of a specific UBP in vivo could provide novel tools for controlling mammalian cell proliferation.