title: Rac is activated by erythropoietin or interleukin-3 and is involved in activation of the Erk signaling pathway.
abstract: Previous studies have shown that hematopoietic cytokines, including erythropoietin (Epo) and interleukin (IL)-3, activate the Ras GTPase and the downstream Raf/Erk/Elk-1 signaling pathway. Here we report that Epo or IL-3 rapidly and transiently activates Rac, a Rho family GTPase, in hematopoietic cell lines, 32D/EpoR-Wt and UT-7. The cytokine-induced activation of Rac was augmented in a 32D/EpoR-Wt clone that inducibly overexpresses the adaptor protein CrkL or the Ras guanine nucleotide exchange factor C3G, which forms a complex with CrkL. Furthermore, the Rac activation was enhanced or inhibited in cells inducibly expressing an activated Ras mutant, H-Ras61L, or a dominant negative Ras mutant, H-Ras17N, respectively. In addition, the cytokine-induced Rac activation was inhibited by a phosphatidyl-inositol 3'-kinase (PI3K) inhibitor, LY294002, which also inhibited the Erk activation. A dominant negative Rac mutant, Rac17N, also inhibited the cytokine-induced activation of Erk as well as Elk-1. On the other hand, activation of Akt downstream of PI3K was found to play an inhibitory role in cytokine activation of Erk/Elk-1. Together, these results indicate that Rac is activated by Epo or IL-3 at downstream of the Ras/PI3K pathway in parallel with Akt and plays a role in activation of the Erk/Elk-1 signaling pathway in hematopoietic cells.
authors.affiliation: Department of Hematology and Oncology, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, 1-5-45 Yushima, Bunkyoku, Tokyo 113-8519, Japan.
authors.forename: Ayako
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Arai
authors.forename: Eiichiro
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kanda
authors.forename: Osamu
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Miura
mesh_terms: D048868:Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing; D000818:Animals; D001854:Bone Marrow Cells / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000201:enzymology; D002867:Chromones / Q000494:pharmacology; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D004789:Enzyme Activation; D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology; D004921:Erythropoietin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D020735:Guanine Nucleotide-Releasing Factor 2 / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007377:Interleukin-3 / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051379:Mice; D020928:Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases / Q000378:metabolism*; D009025:Morpholines / Q000494:pharmacology; D016297:Mutagenesis, Site-Directed; D009687:Nuclear Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D019869:Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases / Q000378:metabolism; D000081082:Phosphoinositide-3 Kinase Inhibitors; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D051057:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D015398:Signal Transduction; D014157:Transcription Factors; D050807:ets-Domain Protein Elk-1; D020744:rac GTP-Binding Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D018631:ras Proteins / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D048868:Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing; D002867:Chromones; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors; D004921:Erythropoietin; D020735:Guanine Nucleotide-Releasing Factor 2; D007377:Interleukin-3; D020928:Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases; D009025:Morpholines; D009687:Nuclear Proteins; D019869:Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases; D000081082:Phosphoinositide-3 Kinase Inhibitors; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D051057:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors; D050807:ets-Domain Protein Elk-1; D020744:rac GTP-Binding Proteins; D018631:ras Proteins; C082869:CRKL protein; C494112:ELK1 protein, human; C494113:Elk1 protein, mouse; C085911:2-(4-morpholinyl)-8-phenyl-4H-1-benzopyran-4-one; C494918:AKT1 protein, human