Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

PI3K/mTOR/AKT Signaling Pathway

PI3K/mTOR/AKT Signaling Pathway

The mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) is a serine/threonine kinase that regulates growth, proliferation, and cell survival in response to hormones, growth factors, or nutrient availability. This kinase exists in two structurally and functionally distinct forms: mTOR complex 1 (mTORC1) and mTOR complex 2 (mTORC2). The first form (mTORC1) is composed of a rapamycin-sensitive Raptor and proline-rich Akt substrate, PRAS40. In contrast, mTORC2 consists of a rapamycin-insensitive companion...

Protein Kinases and Phosphatases

Protein Kinases and Phosphatases

Proteins undergo chemical modifications that trigger changes in the charge, structure, and conformation of the proteins. Phosphorylation, acetylation, glycosylation, nitrosylation, ubiquitination, lipidation, methylation, and proteolysis are various protein modifications that regulate protein activity. Such modifications are usually enzyme-driven.
Protein kinases
Many proteins in the cell are regulated by phosphorylation, the addition of a phosphate group. A family of enzymes called kinases...

Protein Kinases and Phosphatases

Protein Kinases and Phosphatases

Proteins undergo chemical modifications that trigger changes in the charge, structure, and conformation of the proteins. Phosphorylation, acetylation, glycosylation, nitrosylation, ubiquitination, lipidation, methylation, and proteolysis are various protein modifications that regulate protein activity. Such modifications are usually enzyme-driven.
Protein kinases
Many proteins in the cell are regulated by phosphorylation, the addition of a phosphate group. A family of enzymes called kinases...

Amplifying Signals via Enzymatic Cascade

Amplifying Signals via Enzymatic Cascade

When a ligand binds to a cell-surface receptor, the receptor's intracellular domain changes shape, which may either activate its enzyme function or allow its binding to other molecules. The initial signal is amplified by most signal transduction pathways. This means that a single ligand molecule can activate multiple molecules of a downstream target. Proteins that relay a signal are most commonly phosphorylated at one or more sites, activating or inactivating the protein. Kinases catalyze the...

MAPK Signaling Cascades

MAPK Signaling Cascades

Mitogen-activated protein kinase, or MAPK pathway, activates three sequential kinases to regulate cellular responses such as proliferation, differentiation, survival, and apoptosis. The canonical MAPK pathway starts with a mitogen or growth factor binding to an RTK. The activated RTKs stimulate Ras, which recruits Raf or MAP3 Kinase (MAPKKK), the first kinase of the MAPK signaling cascade. Raf further phosphorylates and activates MEK or MAP2 Kinases (MAPKK), which in turn phosphorylates MAP...

Interactions Between Signaling Pathways

Interactions Between Signaling Pathways

Signaling cascades usually lack linearity. Multiple pathways interact and regulate one another, allowing cells to integrate and respond to diverse environmental stimuli.
Convergence and divergence, and cross-talk between signaling pathways
Two distinct signaling pathways can converge on a single functional unit, which may either be a single protein or a complex of proteins. The response is either functionally distinct or synergistic between the two pathways but different from the response...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

PHLPP is neither a Phosphatase nor a Tumor Suppressor.

BioEssays : news and reviews in molecular, cellular and developmental biology·2026

Same author

Structural Mechanism and Cellular Restriction of Tau Seeding from Endolysosomes.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026

Same author

The Human Autophagy Core Complexes.

Annual review of biochemistry·2026

Same author

Reconstitution of multistep recruitment of ULK1 to membranes in autophagy.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2025

Same author

Structural basis for mTORC1 activation on the lysosomal membrane.

Nature·2025

Same author

In situ cryo-ET visualization of mitochondrial depolarization and mitophagic engulfment.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2025

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 14, 2026

Identification of Kinase-substrate Pairs Using High Throughput Screening

Identification of Kinase-substrate Pairs Using High Throughput Screening

Published on: August 29, 2015

Two kinase family dramas.

Thomas A Leonard¹, James H Hurley

¹Laboratory of Molecular Biology, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-0580, USA.

|June 19, 2007

Summary

Focal adhesion kinase (FAK) structure reveals its autoinhibited state. This finding, alongside ZAP-70 kinase structures, highlights diverse autoinhibition mechanisms in the kinase superfamily for activity regulation.

Area of Science:

Biochemistry
Structural Biology
Molecular Biology

Background:

Focal adhesion kinase (FAK) is a key regulator of cell signaling pathways.
Understanding FAK's regulatory mechanisms is crucial for deciphering cellular processes like adhesion and migration.

Discussion:

The reported structure of FAK elucidates its autoinhibited conformation.
This structural insight provides a basis for understanding how FAK activity is controlled.
Comparison with ZAP-70 kinase structures reveals common and divergent autoinhibition strategies.

Key Insights:

FAK maintains an autoinhibited state through specific structural features.
Autoinhibition is a prevalent mechanism for regulating kinase activity across different superfamilies.

More Related Videos

Characterization at the Molecular Level using Robust Biochemical Approaches of a New Kinase Protein

Characterization at the Molecular Level using Robust Biochemical Approaches of a New Kinase Protein

Published on: June 30, 2019

Assaying Protein Kinase Activity with Radiolabeled ATP

Assaying Protein Kinase Activity with Radiolabeled ATP

Published on: May 26, 2017

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jul 14, 2026

Identification of Kinase-substrate Pairs Using High Throughput Screening

Identification of Kinase-substrate Pairs Using High Throughput Screening

Published on: August 29, 2015

Characterization at the Molecular Level using Robust Biochemical Approaches of a New Kinase Protein

Characterization at the Molecular Level using Robust Biochemical Approaches of a New Kinase Protein

Published on: June 30, 2019

Assaying Protein Kinase Activity with Radiolabeled ATP

Assaying Protein Kinase Activity with Radiolabeled ATP

Published on: May 26, 2017

Structural biology provides critical insights into enzyme regulation.

Outlook:

Further studies can explore FAK activators and inhibitors based on its autoinhibited structure.
Investigating other kinases will reveal broader principles of kinase superfamily regulation.
This work paves the way for targeted therapeutic interventions by understanding kinase regulation.