The ERK signaling cascade--views from different subcellular compartments

Zhong Yao1, Rony Seger

  • 1Department of Biological Regulation, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel.

Insights

The extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) cascade

Area of Science:

  • Cellular signaling
  • Molecular biology
  • Biochemistry

Background:

  • The extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) cascade is a crucial signaling pathway.
  • It is activated by diverse extracellular stimuli.
  • The pathway regulates numerous cellular processes through its components.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the intracellular localizations of ERK cascade components.
  • To examine how these localizations affect ERK activation and specificity.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of studies on ERK cascade localization.
  • Analysis of experimental data on subcellular distribution.
  • Discussion of regulatory mechanisms.

Main Results:

  • ERK cascade components display dynamic and versatile subcellular distributions.
  • Localization significantly impacts the temporal and spatial modulation of cellular processes.
  • Specific localizations are critical for signal transduction and target regulation.

Conclusions:

  • Intracellular localization is a key determinant of ERK cascade function.
  • Understanding ERK localization is essential for comprehending cellular signaling and regulation.
  • This review highlights the importance of subcellular dynamics in kinase signaling.

Related Concept Videos

Intracellular Signaling Cascades01:24

Intracellular Signaling Cascades

Once a ligand binds to a receptor, the signal is transmitted through the membrane and into the cytoplasm. The continuation of a signal in this manner is called signal transduction. Signal transduction only occurs with cell-surface receptors, which cannot interact with most components of the cell, such as DNA. Only internal receptors can interact directly with DNA in the nucleus to initiate protein synthesis. When a ligand binds to its receptor, conformational changes occur that affect the...
Intracellular Signaling Cascades01:24

Intracellular Signaling Cascades

Once a ligand binds to a receptor, the signal is transmitted through the membrane and into the cytoplasm. The continuation of a signal in this manner is called signal transduction. Signal transduction only occurs with cell-surface receptors, which cannot interact with most components of the cell, such as DNA. Only internal receptors can interact directly with DNA in the nucleus to initiate protein synthesis. When a ligand binds to its receptor, conformational changes occur that affect the...
Amplifying Signals via Enzymatic Cascade01:22

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 Cascades01:07

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...
Assembly of Signaling Complexes01:30

Assembly of Signaling Complexes

Multiprotein signaling complexes are formed in a dynamic process involving protein-protein interactions at the cytoplasmic domain of transmembrane receptors or enzymatic and non-enzymatic proteins associated with the receptor. These complexes ensure the activation and propagation of intracellular signals that regulate cell functions.
Interaction domains in cell signaling
Interaction domains recognize exposed features of their binding partners containing post-translationally modified sequences,...
ER Retrieval Pathway01:45

ER Retrieval Pathway

In the secretory pathway, vesicles transport proteins from one cellular compartment to another in forward transport to deliver the protein to its correct location. Occasionally, misfolded proteins and incorrect proteins escape their original compartments, and a retrieval pathway is used to return the escaped proteins to their original compartment.
The ER uses many checkpoints to prevent the entry of incorrectly folded or a resident protein as cargo onto a transport vesicle. These mechanisms...