Crystal Structure of Human p38alpha complexed with PH-797804
[MK14_HUMAN] Serine/threonine kinase which acts as an essential component of the MAP kinase signal transduction pathway. MAPK14 is one of the four p38 MAPKs which play an important role in the cascades of cellular responses evoked by extracellular stimuli such as proinflammatory cytokines or physical stress leading to direct activation of transcription factors. Accordingly, p38 MAPKs phosphorylate a broad range of proteins and it has been estimated that they may have approximately 200 to 300 substrates each. Some of the targets are downstream kinases which are activated through phosphorylation and further phosphorylate additional targets. RPS6KA5/MSK1 and RPS6KA4/MSK2 can directly phosphorylate and activate transcription factors such as CREB1, ATF1, the NF-kappa-B isoform RELA/NFKB3, STAT1 and STAT3, but can also phosphorylate histone H3 and the nucleosomal protein HMGN1. RPS6KA5/MSK1 and RPS6KA4/MSK2 play important roles in the rapid induction of immediate-early genes in response to stress or mitogenic stimuli, either by inducing chromatin remodeling or by recruiting the transcription machinery. On the other hand, two other kinase targets, MAPKAPK2/MK2 and MAPKAPK3/MK3, participate in the control of gene expression mostly at the post-transcriptional level, by phosphorylating ZFP36 (tristetraprolin) and ELAVL1, and by regulating EEF2K, which is important for the elongation of mRNA during translation. MKNK1/MNK1 and MKNK2/MNK2, two other kinases activated by p38 MAPKs, regulate protein synthesis by phosphorylating the initiation factor EIF4E2. MAPK14 interacts also with casein kinase II, leading to its activation through autophosphorylation and further phosphorylation of TP53/p53. In the cytoplasm, the p38 MAPK pathway is an important regulator of protein turnover. For example, CFLAR is an inhibitor of TNF-induced apoptosis whose proteasome-mediated degradation is regulated by p38 MAPK phosphorylation. In a similar way, MAPK14 phosphorylates the ubiquitin ligase SIAH2, regulating its activity towards EGLN3. MAPK14 may also inhibit the lysosomal degradation pathway of autophagy by interfering with the intracellular trafficking of the transmembrane protein ATG9. Another function of MAPK14 is to regulate the endocytosis of membrane receptors by different mechanisms that impinge on the small GTPase RAB5A. In addition, clathrin-mediated EGFR internalization induced by inflammatory cytokines and UV irradiation depends on MAPK14-mediated phosphorylation of EGFR itself as well as of RAB5A effectors. Ectodomain shedding of transmembrane proteins is regulated by p38 MAPKs as well. In response to inflammatory stimuli, p38 MAPKs phosphorylate the membrane-associated metalloprotease ADAM17. Such phosphorylation is required for ADAM17-mediated ectodomain shedding of TGF-alpha family ligands, which results in the activation of EGFR signaling and cell proliferation. Another p38 MAPK substrate is FGFR1. FGFR1 can be translocated from the extracellular space into the cytosol and nucleus of target cells, and regulates processes such as rRNA synthesis and cell growth. FGFR1 translocation requires p38 MAPK activation. In the nucleus, many transcription factors are phosphorylated and activated by p38 MAPKs in response to different stimuli. Classical examples include ATF1, ATF2, ATF6, ELK1, PTPRH, DDIT3, TP53/p53 and MEF2C and MEF2A. The p38 MAPKs are emerging as important modulators of gene expression by regulating chromatin modifiers and remodelers. The promoters of several genes involved in the inflammatory response, such as IL6, IL8 and IL12B, display a p38 MAPK-dependent enrichment of histone H3 phosphorylation on 'Ser-10' (H3S10ph) in LPS-stimulated myeloid cells. This phosphorylation enhances the accessibility of the cryptic NF-kappa-B-binding sites marking promoters for increased NF-kappa-B recruitment. Phosphorylates CDC25B and CDC25C which is required for binding to 14-3-3 proteins and leads to initiation of a G2 delay after ultraviolet radiation. Phosphorylates TIAR following DNA damage, releasing TIAR from GADD45A mRNA and preventing mRNA degradation. The p38 MAPKs may also have kinase-independent roles, which are thought to be due to the binding to targets in the absence of phosphorylation. Protein O-Glc-N-acylation catalyzed by the OGT is regulated by MAPK14, and, although OGT does not seem to be phosphorylated by MAPK14, their interaction increases upon MAPK14 activation induced by glucose deprivation. This interaction may regulate OGT activity by recruiting it to specific targets such as neurofilament H, stimulating its O-Glc-N-acylation. Required in mid-fetal development for the growth of embryo-derived blood vessels in the labyrinth layer of the placenta. Also plays an essential role in developmental and stress-induced erythropoiesis, through regulation of EPO gene expression. Isoform MXI2 activation is stimulated by mitogens and oxidative stress and only poorly phosphorylates ELK1 and ATF2. Isoform EXIP may play a role in the early onset of apoptosis. Phosphorylates S100A9 at 'Thr-113'.                
Publication Abstract from PubMed
PH-797804 is a diarylpyridinone inhibitor of p38alpha mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase derived from a racemic mixture as the more potent atropisomer (aS), first proposed by molecular modeling and subsequently confirmed by experiments. On the basis of structural comparison with a different biaryl pyrazole template and supported by dozens of high-resolution crystal structures of p38alpha inhibitor complexes, PH-797804 is predicted to possess a high level of specificity across the broad human kinase genome. We used a structural bioinformatics approach to identify two selectivity elements encoded by the TXXXG sequence motif on the p38alpha kinase hinge: (i) Thr106 that serves as the gatekeeper to the buried hydrophobic pocket occupied by 2,4-difluorophenyl of PH-797804 and (ii) the bidentate hydrogen bonds formed by the pyridinone moiety with the kinase hinge requiring an induced 180 degrees rotation of the Met109-Gly110 peptide bond. The peptide flip occurs in p38alpha kinase due to the critical glycine residue marked by its conformational flexibility. Kinome-wide sequence mining revealed rare presentation of the selectivity motif. Corroboratively, PH-797804 exhibited exceptionally high specificity against MAP kinases and the related kinases. No cross-reactivity was observed in large panels of kinase screens (selectivity ratio of >500-fold). In cellular assays, PH-797804 demonstrated superior potency and selectivity consistent with the biochemical measurements. PH-797804 has met safety criteria in human phase I studies and is under clinical development for several inflammatory conditions. Understanding the rationale for selectivity at the molecular level helps elucidate the biological function and design of specific p38alpha kinase inhibitors.
Structural bioinformatics-based prediction of exceptional selectivity of p38 MAP kinase inhibitor PH-797804.,Xing L, Shieh HS, Selness SR, Devraj RV, Walker JK, Devadas B, Hope HR, Compton RP, Schindler JF, Hirsch JL, Benson AG, Kurumbail RG, Stegeman RA, Williams JM, Broadus RM, Walden Z, Monahan JB Biochemistry. 2009 Jul 14;48(27):6402-11. PMID:19496616
From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.