PMID: 21145496;PMCID: PMC3033560;Abstract:
During cell migration, chemoattractant-induced signaling pathways determine the direction of movement by controlling the spatiotemporal dynamics of cytoskeletal components. In this issue of Developmental Cell, Liu et al. report that the target of rapamycin complex 2 (TORC2) controls cell polarity and chemotaxis through regulation of both F-actin and myosin II in migrating neutrophils. © 2010 Elsevier Inc.
PMID: 17635933;PMCID: PMC2064438;Abstract:
Phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)γ and Dictyostelium PI3K are activated via G protein-coupled receptors through binding to the Gβγ subunit and Ras. However, the mechanistic role(s) of Gβγ and Ras in PI3K activation remains elusive. Furthermore, the dynamics and function of PI3K activation in the absence of extracellular stimuli have not been fully investigated. We report that gβ null cells display PI3K and Ras activation, as well as the reciprocal localization of PI3K and PTEN, which lead to local accumulation of PI(3,4,5)P3. Simultaneous imaging analysis reveals that in the absence of extracellular stimuli, autonomous PI3K and Ras activation occur, concurrently, at the same sites where F-actin projection emerges. The loss of PI3K binding to Ras - guanosine triphosphate abolishes this PI3K activation, whereas prevention of PI3K activity suppresses autonomous Ras activation, suggesting that PI3K and Ras form a positive feedback circuit. This circuit is associated with both random cell migration and cytokinesis and may have initially evolved to control stochastic changes in the cytoskeleton. © The Rockefeller University Press.
PMID: 16857342;Abstract:
The V2 vasopressin receptor (V2R) activates the mitogen activated protein kinases (MAPK) ERK1/2 through a mechanism involving the scaffolding protein βarrestin. Here we report that this activating pathway is independent of Gαs, Gαi, Gαq or Gβγ and that the V2R-mediated activation of Gαs inhibits ERK1/2 activity in a cAMP/PKA-dependent manner. In the HEK293 cells studied, the βarrestin-promoted activation was found to dominate over the PKA-mediated inhibition of the pathway, leading to a strong vasopressin-stimulated ERK1/2 activation. Despite the strong MAPK activation and in contrast with other GPCR, V2R did not induce any significant increase in DNA synthesis, consistent with the notion that the stable interaction between V2R and βarrestin prevents signal propagation to the nucleus. βarrestin was found to be essential for the ERK1/2 activation, indicating that the recruitment of the scaffolding protein is necessary and sufficient to initiate the signal in the absence of any other stimulatory cues. Based on the use of selective pharmacological inhibitors, dominant negative mutants and siRNA, we conclude that the βarrestin-dependent activation of ERK1/2 by the V2R involves c-Src and a metalloproteinase-dependent trans-activation event. These findings demonstrate that βarrestin is a genuine signalling initiator that can, on its own, engage a MAPK activation machinery upon stimulation of a GPCR by its natural ligand. © 2006 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
PMID: 18287584;PMCID: PMC2671295;Abstract:
Phosphoinositide 3-kinase (P13K), PTEN and localized phosphatidylinositol (3,4,5)-trisphosphate [PtdIns(3,4,5)P3] play key roles in chemotaxis, regulating cell motility by controlling the actin cytoskeleton in Dictyostelium and mammalian cells. PtdIns(3,4,5)P3, produced by PI3K, acts via diverse downstream signaling components, including the GTPase Rac, Arf-GTPases and the kinase Akt (PKB). It has become increasingly apparent, however, that chemotaxis results from an interplay between the P13K-PTEN pathway and other parallel pathways in Dictyostelium and mammalian cells. In Dictyostelium, the phospholipase PLA2 acts in concert with P13K to regulate chemotaxis, whereas phospholipase C (PLC) plays a supporting role in modulating P13K activity. In adenocarcinoma cells, PLC and the actin regulator cofilin seem to provide the direction-sensing machinery, whereas P13K might regulate motility.
PMID: 15776020;PMCID: PMC1299283;Abstract:
Recruitment of β-arrestin (β-arr) to agonist-stimulated G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) has a crucial role in controlling signalling efficacy and selectivity. When translocated to the receptor, β-arr is believed to undergo important conformational rearrangement necessary for its downstream actions. To probe these changes in living cells, we constructed an intramolecular bioluminescence resonance energy transfer (BRET)-based biosensor, in which β-arr is sandwiched between the Renilla luciferase (Luc) and the yellow fluorescent protein (YFP). We show that the intramolecular BRET between Luc and YFP was significantly increased following GPCR activation, suggesting a conformational rearrangement bringing the amino terminus and carboxyl terminus of β-arr in closer proximity. Kinetic analysis showed that this conformational change follows the initial β-arr/receptor engagement. In addition to providing new insights into the agonist-induced conformational rearrangements of β-arr in living cells, the double-brilliance β-arr offers a universal biosensor for GPCR activation, allowing the study of native receptors in large-scale screening analysis. ©2005 European Molecular Biology Organization.
