title: Human T-lymphotropic virus type I tax activates I-kappa B kinase by inhibiting I-kappa B kinase-associated serine/threonine protein phosphatase 2A.
abstract: I-kappa B kinase (IKK) is a serine/threonine kinase that phosphorylates I-kappa B alpha and I-kappa B beta and targets them for polyubiquitination and proteasome-mediated degradation. IKK consists of two highly related catalytic subunits, alpha and beta, and a regulatory gamma subunit, which becomes activated after serine phosphorylation of the activation loops of the catalytic domains. The human T-lymphotropic retrovirus type-I trans-activator, Tax, has been shown to interact directly with IKK gamma and activates IKK via a mechanism not fully understood. Here we demonstrate that IKK binds serine/threonine protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A), and via a tripartite protein-protein interaction, Tax, IKK gamma, and PP2A form a stable ternary complex. In vitro, PP2A down-regulates active IKK prepared from Tax-producing MT4 cells. In the presence of Tax, however, the ability of PP2A to inactivate IKK is diminished. Despite their interaction with IKK gamma, PP2A-interaction-defective Tax mutants failed to activate NF-kappa B. Our data support the notion that IKK gamma-associated PP2A is responsible for the rapid deactivation of IKK, and inhibition of PP2A by Tax in the context of IKK x PP2A x Tax ternary complex leads to constitutive IKK and NF-kappa B activation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, Maryland 20814, USA.
authors.forename: De-Xue
authors.initials: DX
authors.lastname: Fu
authors.forename: Yu-Liang
authors.initials: YL
authors.lastname: Kuo
authors.forename: Bao-Ying
authors.initials: BY
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Kuan-Teh
authors.initials: KT
authors.lastname: Jeang
authors.forename: Chou-Zen
authors.initials: CZ
authors.lastname: Giam
mesh_terms: D002384:Catalysis; D002460:Cell Line; D015536:Down-Regulation; D004789:Enzyme Activation; D016356:Gene Products, tax / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D051550:I-kappa B Kinase; D010749:Phosphoprotein Phosphatases / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors* / Q000378:metabolism; D010766:Phosphorylation; D054648:Protein Phosphatase 2; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D016356:Gene Products, tax; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases; C496559:CHUK protein, human; D051550:I-kappa B Kinase; C496560:IKBKB protein, human; C496565:IKBKE protein, human; D010749:Phosphoprotein Phosphatases; D054648:Protein Phosphatase 2