Editorial
Copyright ©2011 Baishideng Publishing Group Co., Limited. All rights reserved.
World J Biol Chem. May 26, 2011; 2(5): 73-89
Published online May 26, 2011. doi: 10.4331/wjbc.v2.i5.73
Physiological roles of mitogen-activated-protein-kinase-activated p38-regulated/activated protein kinase
Sergiy Kostenko, Gianina Dumitriu, Kari Jenssen Lægreid, Ugo Moens
Sergiy Kostenko, Gianina Dumitriu, Kari Jenssen Lægreid, Ugo Moens, Faculty of Health Sciences, Institute of Medical Biology, University of Tromsø, NO-9037 Tromsø, Norway
Author contributions: All authors contributed to the design and writing of this review; Moens U wrote the first draft of the manuscript.
Correspondence to: Ugo Moens, PhD, Faculty of Health Sciences, Institute of Medical Biology, University of Tromsø, NO-9037 Tromsø, Norway. ugo.moens@uit.no
Telephone: +47-77644622 Fax: +47-77644622
Received: April 9, 2011
Revised: April 27, 2011
Accepted: May 4, 2011
Published online: May 26, 2011
Abstract

Mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) are a family of proteins that constitute signaling pathways involved in processes that control gene expression, cell division, cell survival, apoptosis, metabolism, differentiation and motility. The MAPK pathways can be divided into conventional and atypical MAPK pathways. The first group converts a signal into a cellular response through a relay of three consecutive phosphorylation events exerted by MAPK kinase kinases, MAPK kinase, and MAPK. Atypical MAPK pathways are not organized into this three-tiered cascade. MAPK that belongs to both conventional and atypical MAPK pathways can phosphorylate both non-protein kinase substrates and other protein kinases. The latter are referred to as MAPK-activated protein kinases. This review focuses on one such MAPK-activated protein kinase, MAPK-activated protein kinase 5 (MK5) or p38-regulated/activated protein kinase (PRAK). This protein is highly conserved throughout the animal kingdom and seems to be the target of both conventional and atypical MAPK pathways. Recent findings on the regulation of the activity and subcellular localization, bona fide interaction partners and physiological roles of MK5/PRAK are discussed.

Keywords: Mitogen-activated protein kinase, p38-regulated/activated protein kinase, Extracellular signal-regulated kinase, Protein kinase A, Subcellular localization, Phosphorylation, Protein interaction