Mitogen-activated protein kinase 3, also known as p44MAPK and ERK1, is an

enzyme An enzyme () is a protein that acts as a biological catalyst by accelerating chemical reactions. The molecules upon which enzymes may act are called substrate (chemistry), substrates, and the enzyme converts the substrates into different mol ...

that in humans is encoded by the ''MAPK3''

gene In biology, the word gene has two meanings. The Mendelian gene is a basic unit of heredity. The molecular gene is a sequence of nucleotides in DNA that is transcribed to produce a functional RNA. There are two types of molecular genes: protei ...

Function

The protein encoded by this gene is a member of the

mitogen-activated protein kinase A mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK or MAP kinase) is a type of serine/threonine-specific protein kinases involved in directing cellular responses to a diverse array of stimuli, such as mitogens, osmotic stress, heat shock and proinflamma ...

(MAP kinase) family. MAP kinases, also known as

extracellular signal-regulated kinases This glossary of biology terms is a list of definitions of fundamental terms and concepts used in biology, the study of life and of living organisms. It is intended as introductory material for novices; for more specific and technical definitions ...

(ERKs), act in a signaling cascade that regulates various cellular processes such as proliferation, differentiation, and

cell cycle The cell cycle, or cell-division cycle, is the sequential series of events that take place in a cell (biology), cell that causes it to divide into two daughter cells. These events include the growth of the cell, duplication of its DNA (DNA re ...

progression in response to a variety of extracellular signals. This kinase is activated by upstream kinases, resulting in its translocation to the nucleus where it

phosphorylates In biochemistry, phosphorylation is described as the "transfer of a phosphate group" from a donor to an acceptor. A common phosphorylating agent (phosphate donor) is ATP and a common family of acceptor are alcohols: : This equation can be writt ...

nuclear targets. Alternatively spliced transcript variants encoding different protein

isoforms A protein isoform, or "protein variant", is a member of a set of highly similar proteins that originate from a single gene and are the result of genetic differences. While many perform the same or similar biological roles, some isoforms have uniqu ...

have been described.

Clinical significance

It has been suggested that MAPK3, along with the gene

IRAK1 Interleukin-1 receptor-associated kinase 1 (IRAK-1) is an enzyme in humans encoded by the ''IRAK1'' gene. IRAK-1 plays an important role in the regulation of the expression of inflammatory genes by immune cells, such as monocytes and macrophages, ...

, is turned off by two

microRNA Micro ribonucleic acid (microRNA, miRNA, μRNA) are small, single-stranded, non-coding RNA molecules containing 21–23 nucleotides. Found in plants, animals, and even some viruses, miRNAs are involved in RNA silencing and post-transcr ...

s that were activated after the

influenza A ''Influenza A virus'' (''Alphainfluenzavirus influenzae'') or IAV is the only species of the genus ''Alphainfluenzavirus'' of the virus family '' Orthomyxoviridae''. It is a pathogen with strains that infect birds and some mammals, as well as c ...

virus had been made to infect human lung cells.

Signaling pathways

Pharmacological inhibition of ERK1/2 restores

GSK3β Glycogen synthase kinase-3 beta, (GSK-3 beta), is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the ''GSK3B'' gene. In mice, the enzyme is encoded by the Gsk3b gene. Abnormal regulation and expression of GSK-3 beta is associated with an increased susce ...

activity and protein synthesis levels in a model of

tuberous sclerosis Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is a rare multisystem autosomal dominant genetic disease that causes non-cancerous tumours to grow in the brain and on other vital organs such as the kidneys, heart, liver, eyes, lungs and skin. A combinatio ...

Interactions

MAPK3 has been shown to interact with: * DUSP3, * DUSP6 *

GTF2I General transcription factor II-I is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ''GTF2I'' gene. Function This gene encodes a multifunctional phosphoprotein, TFII-I, with roles in transcription and signal transduction. Haploinsuffiency (deletio ...

, *

HDAC4 Histone deacetylase 4, also known as HDAC4, is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ''HDAC4'' gene. Function Histones play a critical role in transcriptional regulation, cell cycle progression, and developmental events. Histone acetylation ...

, *

MAP2K1 Dual specificity mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase 1 is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the ''MAP2K1'' gene. Function The protein encoded by this gene is a member of the dual-specificity protein kinase family that acts as a mit ...

, *

MAP2K2 Dual specificity mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase 2 is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the ''MAP2K2'' gene. It is more commonly known as MEK2, but has many alternative names including CFC4, MKK2, MAPKK2 and PRKMK2. Function The ...

, * PTPN7, * RPS6KA2, and *

SPIB Transcription factor Spi-B is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ''SPIB'' gene. Function SPI1 (MIM 165170) and SPIB are members of a subfamily of ETS (see ETS1; MIM 164720) transcription factors. ETS proteins share a conserved ETS doma ...

References

External links