Abstract

BackgroundPhosphoprotein phosphatase 2A (PP2A), a major serine-threonine protein phosphatase in eukaryotes, is an oligomeric protein comprised of structural (A) and catalytic (C) subunits to which a variable regulatory subunit (B) can associate. The C subunit contains a methyl ester post-translational modification on its C-terminal leucine residue, which is removed by a specific methylesterase (PME-1). Methylesterification is thought to control the binding of different B subunits to AC dimers, but little is known about its physiological significance in vivo.Methodology/Principal FindingsHere, we show that targeted disruption of the PME-1 gene causes perinatal lethality in mice, a phenotype that correlates with a virtually complete loss of the demethylated form of PP2A in the nervous system and peripheral tissues. Interestingly, PP2A catalytic activity over a peptide substrate was dramatically reduced in PME-1(−/−) tissues, which also displayed alterations in phosphoproteome content.ConclusionsThese findings suggest a role for the demethylated form of PP2A in maintenance of enzyme function and phosphorylation networks in vivo.

Highlights

  • Reversible protein phosphorylation regulated by the coordinated action of protein kinases and phosphatases is an essential signaling mechanism for most cellular processes

  • These findings suggest a role for the demethylated form of phosphatase 2A (PP2A) in maintenance of enzyme function and phosphorylation networks in vivo

  • Western blotting with an anti-PME-1 antibody confirmed the absence of PME-1 protein in PME-1(2/2) mice (Fig. 2A)

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Summary

Introduction

Reversible protein phosphorylation regulated by the coordinated action of protein kinases and phosphatases is an essential signaling mechanism for most cellular processes. Post-translational phosphorylation is predicted to occur on more than 30% of all eukaryotic proteins [1]. PP2A is involved in numerous cellular processes, including signal transduction pathways that regulate mitogenic and survival signals, transcriptional and translational events, and the cell cycle [4,5]. Phosphoprotein phosphatase 2A (PP2A), a major serine-threonine protein phosphatase in eukaryotes, is an oligomeric protein comprised of structural (A) and catalytic (C) subunits to which a variable regulatory subunit (B) can associate. The C subunit contains a methyl ester post-translational modification on its C-terminal leucine residue, which is removed by a specific methylesterase (PME-1). Methylesterification is thought to control the binding of different B subunits to AC dimers, but little is known about its physiological significance in vivo

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