title: Role of kinases and the phosphatase calcineurin in the nuclear shuttling of transcription factor NF-AT4.
abstract: A new facet of calcium signalling involves the nuclear import of the NF-AT transcription factors from their dormant position in the cytoplasm. The protein phosphatase calcineurin appears to play an essential role in activating NF-AT nuclear import, as the calcineurin inhibitors cyclosporin A and FK506 block dephosphorylation and nuclear import of NF-AT (refs 4-7). Here we show that calcium signalling induces an association between NF-AT4 and calcineurin, and that these molecules are transported, as a complex, to the nucleus, where calcineurin continues to dephosphorylate NF-AT4. We propose that a nuclear complex of NF-AT4 and calcineurin maintains calcium signalling by counteracting a vigorous nuclear NF-AT kinase.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cell Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massacusetts 02115, USA.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Shibasaki
authors.forename: E R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Price
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Milan
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: McKeon
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D019703:Calcineurin; D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism; D002148:Calmodulin-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D002460:Cell Line; D002467:Cell Nucleus / Q000378:metabolism*; D006224:Cricetinae; D004247:DNA; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D004789:Enzyme Activation; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016296:Mutagenesis; D050778:NFATC Transcription Factors; D009687:Nuclear Proteins; D010749:Phosphoprotein Phosphatases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D010766:Phosphorylation; D011494:Protein Kinases / Q000378:metabolism*; D021382:Protein Sorting Signals / Q000378:metabolism; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000378:metabolism*; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured
chemical_list: D002148:Calmodulin-Binding Proteins; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D050778:NFATC Transcription Factors; D009687:Nuclear Proteins; D021382:Protein Sorting Signals; D014157:Transcription Factors; D004247:DNA; D011494:Protein Kinases; D019703:Calcineurin; D010749:Phosphoprotein Phosphatases; D002118:Calcium