title: LATS1 phosphorylates forkhead L2 and regulates its transcriptional activity.
abstract: Forkhead L2 (FOXL2) is expressed in the ovary and acts as a transcriptional repressor of the steroidogenic acute regulatory (StAR) gene, a marker of granulosa cell differentiation. Human FOXL2 mutations that produce truncated proteins lacking the COOH terminus result in blepharophimosis/ptosis/epicanthus inversus (BPES) syndrome type I, which is associated with premature ovarian failure (POF). In this study, we investigated whether FOXL2's activity as a transcriptional repressor is regulated by phosphorylation. We found that FOXL2 is phosphorylated at a serine residue and, using yeast two-hybrid screening, identified LATS1 as a potential FOXL2-interacting protein. LATS1 is a serine/threonine kinase whose deletion in mice results in an ovarian phenotype similar to POF. Using coimmunoprecipitation and kinase assays, we confirmed that LATS1 binds to FOXL2 and demonstrated that LATS1 phosphorylates FOXL2 at a serine residue. Moreover, we found that FOXL2 and LATS1 are coexpressed in developing mouse gonads and in granulosa cells of small and medium follicles in the mouse ovary. Last, we demonstrated that coexpression with LATS1 enhances FOXL2's activity as a repressor of the StAR promoter, and this results from the kinase activity of LATS1. These results provide novel evidence that FOXL2 is phosphorylated by LATS1 and that this phosphorylation enhances the transcriptional repression of the StAR gene, a marker of granulosa cell differentiation. These data support our hypothesis that phosphorylation of FOXL2 may be a control mechanism regulating the rate of granulosa cell differentiation and hence, follicle maturation, and its dysregulation may contribute to accelerated follicular development and POF in BPES type I.
authors.affiliation: Center for Fertility and Reproductive Medicine, Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, Department of Ob/Gyn, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, 8635 West Third St., Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA. pisarskam@cshs.org
authors.forename: Margareta D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Pisarska
authors.forename: Fang-Ting
authors.initials: FT
authors.lastname: Kuo
authors.forename: Ikuko K
authors.initials: IK
authors.lastname: Bentsi-Barnes
authors.forename: Salma
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Khan
authors.forename: Gillian M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Barlow
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D016466:CHO Cells; D006224:Cricetinae; D003412:Cricetulus; D005260:Female; D000074842:Forkhead Box Protein L2; D051858:Forkhead Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D051379:Mice; D016297:Mutagenesis, Site-Directed; D010766:Phosphorylation; D016649:Primary Ovarian Insufficiency / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D012313:RNA / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D014158:Transcription, Genetic; D014162:Transfection; D020798:Two-Hybrid System Techniques
chemical_list: D000074842:Forkhead Box Protein L2; D051858:Forkhead Transcription Factors; C498893:Foxl2 protein, mouse; D012313:RNA; C490501:Lats1 protein, mouse; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases
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