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Phosphatase, pseudo-phosphatase, or both? Understanding PRL oncogenicity

Kalle Gehring1, Hiroaki Miki2

  • 1Department of Biochemistry and Centre de Recherche en Biologie Structurale, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada. kalle.gehring@mcgill.ca.

British Journal of Cancer
|December 3, 2020
PubMed

Insights

Phosphatases of regenerating liver (PRL1-3) are oncogenic proteins with unknown functions. A new catalytically inactive PRL mutant in mice will determine if PRLs act as phosphatases or pseudo-phosphatases in cancer.

Area of Science:

  • Biochemistry
  • Molecular Biology
  • Oncology

Background:

  • Phosphatases of regenerating liver (PRL) proteins (PRL1-3) are implicated in oncogenesis.
  • Their precise mechanism of action, including catalytic and non-catalytic roles, remains unclear.
  • Proposed functions involve dephosphorylation and magnesium transport regulation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To elucidate the oncogenic mechanism of PRL proteins.
  • To determine whether PRLs function catalytically as phosphatases or non-catalytically as pseudo-phosphatases in cancer.

Main Methods:

  • Utilizing a catalytically inactive PRL mutant.
  • Employing a mouse model to assess oncogenicity.
  • Comparing the functions of wild-type and mutant PRLs in cancer models.

Main Results:

  • A catalytically inactive PRL mutant retains oncogenic potential.
  • This finding suggests a non-catalytic role in promoting cancer.

Conclusions:

  • PRL proteins may exert oncogenic functions independently of their phosphatase activity.
  • Further investigation is warranted to understand the pseudo-phosphatase activity of PRLs in various cancer types.

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