Selective phosphorylation of human DNA methyltransferase by protein kinase C

Human DNA methyltransferase, the enzyme thought to be responsible for the somatic inheritance of patterns of DNA methylation, is an effective substrate for phosphorylation by protein kinase C. This provides a plausible mechanistic link between the action of tumor promoting phorbol esters, which stimulate protein kinase C, and abnormal patterns of DNA methylation often observed in transformed cells.