title: The essential role of MEKK3 signaling in angiotensin II-induced calcineurin/nuclear factor of activated T-cells activation.
abstract: Calcineurin is a serine/threonine protein phosphatase that plays a critical role in many physiologic processes, such as T-cell activation, apoptosis, skeletal myocyte differentiation, and cardiac hypertrophy. We determined that active MEKK3 was capable of activating calcineurin/nuclear factor of activated T-cells (NFAT) signaling in cardiac myocytes and reprogramming cardiac gene expression. In contrast, small interference RNA directed against MEKK3 and a dominant negative form of MEKK3 caused the reduction of NFAT activation in response to angiotensin II in cardiac myocytes. Genetic studies showed that MEKK3-deficient mouse embryo fibroblasts failed to activate calcineurin/NFAT in response to angiotensin II, a potent NFAT activator. Conversely, restoring MEKK3 to the MEKK3-deficient cells restored angiotensin II-mediated calcineurin/NFAT activation. We determined that angiotensin II induced MEKK3 phosphorylation. Thus, MEKK3 functions downstream of the AT1 receptor and is essential for calcineurin/NFAT activation. Finally, we determined that MEKK3-mediated activation of calcineurin/NFAT signaling was associated with the phosphorylation of modulatory calcineurin-interacting protein 1 at Ser(108) and Ser(112). Taken together, our studies reveal a previously unrecognized novel essential regulatory role of MEKK3 signaling in calcineurin/NFAT activation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Texas at Houston Medical School, Houston, Texas 77030, USA.
authors.forename: Shahrzad
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Abbasi
authors.forename: Bing
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Su
authors.forename: Rodney E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Kellems
authors.forename: Jianhua
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Yang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Xia
mesh_terms: D000804:Angiotensin II / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D019703:Calcineurin / Q000378:metabolism*; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D005347:Fibroblasts / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D005799:Genes, Dominant; D006801:Humans; D047908:Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation; D048748:MAP Kinase Kinase Kinase 3 / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D051379:Mice; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D009124:Muscle Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D032383:Myocytes, Cardiac / Q000378:metabolism*; D050778:NFATC Transcription Factors / Q000378:metabolism*; D034741:RNA, Small Interfering / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D044140:Receptor, Angiotensin, Type 1 / Q000378:metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction
chemical_list: D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D047908:Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; D009124:Muscle Proteins; D050778:NFATC Transcription Factors; C108612:RCAN1 protein, human; D034741:RNA, Small Interfering; D044140:Receptor, Angiotensin, Type 1; D000804:Angiotensin II; D048748:MAP Kinase Kinase Kinase 3; C482625:MAP3K3 protein, human; C482626:Map3k3 protein, mouse; D019703:Calcineurin