A myristoyl/phosphotyrosine switch regulates c-Abl.

The c-Abl tyrosine kinase is inhibited by mechanisms that are poorly understood. Disruption of these mechanisms in the Bcr-Abl oncoprotein leads to several forms of human leukemia. We found that like Src kinases, c-Abl 1b is activated by phosphotyrosine ligands. Ligand-activated c-Abl is particularly sensitive to the anti-cancer drug STI-571/Gleevec/imatinib ...
(STI-571). The SH2 domain-phosphorylated tail interaction in Src kinases is functionally replaced in c-Abl by an intramolecular engagement of the N-terminal myristoyl modification with the kinase domain. Functional studies coupled with structural analysis define a myristoyl/phosphotyrosine switch in c-Abl that regulates docking and accessibility of the SH2 domain. This mechanism offers an explanation for the observed cellular activation of c-Abl by tyrosine-phosphorylated proteins, the intracellular mobility of c-Abl, and it provides new insights into the mechanism of action of STI-571.
Mesh Terms:
Animals, Catalysis, Cell Line, Cercopithecus aethiops, Enzyme Inhibitors, Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic, Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic, Humans, Ligands, Models, Biological, Models, Molecular, Mutation, Phosphorylation, Phosphotyrosine, Piperazines, Protein Binding, Protein-Tyrosine Kinases, Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-abl, Pyrimidines, Vero Cells, src Homology Domains
Cell
Date: Mar. 21, 2003
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