Identification of protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B and casein as substrates for 124-v-Mos

Abstract

Background: The mos proto-oncogene encodes a cytoplasmic serine/threonine-specific protein kinase with crucial function during meiotic cell division in vertebrates. Based on oncogenic amino acid substitutions the viral derivative, 124-v-Mos, displays constitutive protein kinase activity and functions independent of unknown upstream effectors of mos protein kinase. We have utilized this property of 124-v-Mos and screened for novel mos substrates in immunocomplex kinase assays in vitro.

Results: We generated recombinant 124-v-Mos using the baculovirus expression system in Spodoptera frugiperda cells and demonstrated constitutive kinase activity by the ability of 124-v-Mos to auto-phosphorylate and to phosphorylate vimentin, a known substrate of c-Mos. Using this approach we analyzed a panel of acidic and basic substrates in immunocomplex protein kinase assays and identified novel in vitro substrates for 124-v-Mos, the protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B), alpha-casein and beta-casein. We controlled mos-specific phosphorylation of PTP1B and casein in comparative assays using a synthetic kinase-inactive 124-v-Mos mutant and further, tryptic digests of mos-phosphorylated beta-casein identified a phosphopeptide specifically targeted by wild-type 124-v-Mos. Two-dimensional phosphoamino acid analyses showed that 124-v-mos targets serine and threonine residues for phosphorylation in casein at a 1:1 ratio but auto-phosphorylation occurs predominantly on serine residues.

Conclusion: The mos substrates identified in this study represent a basis to approach the identification of the mos-consensus phosphorylation motif, important for the development of specific inhibitors of the Mos protein kinase.

Figure 1

Constitutive kinase activity of immunopurified 124-v-Mos from baculovirus expressing Sf9 insect cells. Auto-phosphorylation of immunopurified 124-v-Mos expressed in Sf9 cells is shown in B (Coomassie stained 10% SDS-PAGE) and A (corresponding autoradiograph). Parallel 124-v-Mos kinase assays were subjected to a two-dimensional phosphoamino acid analysis (C) or a tryptic digestion followed by a two-dimensional resolution (D). Arrowheads indicate the origin of sample application in (C,D) and the position of 124-v-Mos (A,B).

Figure 2

124-v-Mos phosphorylates vimentin but not tubulin. In vitro 124-v-Mos kinase assays with either vimentin (C,D) or purified tubulin from brain (A,B) as substrates were electrophoresed using 10% SDS-PAGE and Coomassie stained (B,D), the corresponding autoradiographs are shown in (A,C). Immunoprecipitates of Sf9 cells expressing the kinase-inactive PKCγ^K380R were indicated as controls.

Figure 3

124-v-Mos phosphorylates α- and β-casein in vitro. Mos kinase assays, in the presence of α- and β-casein, were resolved using 10% SDS-PAGE; the Coomassie stained protein gel shown in 3A, right panel and the corresponding autoradiograph on the left panel. Arrowheads indicate the position of 124-v-Mos, α- and β-casein and the antibody. Using two control immunoprecipitates of Sf9 cells expressing the synthetic kinase-inactive constructs, 124-v-Mos^K121R or PKCγ^K380R, Mos-specific β-casein phosphorylation was demonstrated in 3B and 3C: Mos kinase assays were blotted on nylon-membrane, the phospho-β-casein bands (B, arrowhead) excised and ³²P-Cerenkov counts recorded (B). Alternatively, the excised phospho-β-casein bands were digested with trypsin and electrophoresed using 16% SDS-PAGE (C). The arrowhead in 3C indicates the tryptic β-casein peptide phosphorylated by wild-type 124-v-Mos only. Further, two-dimensional phosphoamino acid analyses of 124-v-Mos phosphorylated α-casein (D, left panel) and β-casein (D, right panel) were completed, the arrowheads indicating the origins of sample application.

Figure 4

PTP-1B is a substrate for 124-v-Mos in vitro. In vitro Mos kinase assays, using purified PTP-1B as a substrate, were resolved using 10% SDS-PAGE and the autoradiograph is shown in 4A. Immunoprecipitates of Sf9 cells expressing the kinase-inactive 124-v-Mos^K121R variant or PTP-1B alone were included as controls (A,B). A parallel kinase assay was blotted on nylon-membrane and PTP-1B was detected (B) using the PTP-1B-specific antiserum FG6 [29], arrowheads indicate the position of 124-v-Mos and PTP-1B.