RACK1 targets the extracellular signal-regulated kinase/mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway to link integrin engagement with focal adhesion disassembly and cell motility.

ABSTRACT: The extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) cascade is activated in response to a multitude of extracellular signals and converts these signals into a variety of specific biological responses, including cell differentiation, cell movement, cell division, and apoptosis. The specificity of the biological response is likely to be controlled in large measure by the localization of signaling, thus enabling ERK activity to be directed towards specific targets. Here we show that the RACK1 scaffold protein functions specifically in integrin-mediated activation of the mitogen-activated protein kinase/ERK cascade and targets active ERK to focal adhesions. We found that RACK1 associated with the core kinases of the ERK pathway, Raf, MEK, and ERK, and that attenuation of RACK1 expression resulted

SUBMITTER: Vomastek T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2169169 | biostudies-literature | 2007 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature