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Imaging Spatial Reorganization of a MAPK Signaling Pathway Using the Tobacco Transient Expression System
Published on: March 20, 2016
The Arabidopsis thaliana MEK AtMKK6 activates the MAP kinase AtMPK13
Balázs Melikant1, Concetta Giuliani, Susanne Halbmayer-Watzina
1Max F. Perutz Laboratories, University Departments at the Vienna Biocenter, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics, University of Vienna, Dr. Bohr-Gasse 9, A-1030 Vienna, Austria.
Abstract:
Mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinases mediate cellular responses to a wide variety of stimuli. Activation of a MAP kinase occurs after phosphorylation by an upstream dual-specificity protein kinase, known as a MAP kinase kinase or MEK. The Arabidopsis thaliana genome encodes 10 MEKs but few of these have been shown directly to activate any of the 20 Arabidopsis MAP kinases. We show here that functional complementation of the cell lysis phenotype of a mutant yeast strain depends on the co-expression of the Arabidopsis MEK AtMKK6 and the MAP kinase AtMPK13. The kinase activity of AtMPK13 is stimulated in the presence of AtMKK6 in yeast cells. RT-PCR analysis showed the co-expression of these two genes in diverse plant tissues. These data show that AtMKK6 can functionally activate the MAP kinase AtMPK13.
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