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Journal ArticleDOI

Proteolytic Inactivation of MAP-Kinase-Kinase by Anthrax Lethal Factor

TLDR
It is shown that LF is a protease that cleaves the amino terminus of mitogen-activated protein kinase kinases 1 and 2 and that this cleavage inactivates MAPKK1 and inhibits the MAPK signal transduction pathway.
Abstract: 
Anthrax lethal toxin, produced by the bacterium Bacillus anthracis, is the major cause of death in animals infected with anthrax. One component of this toxin, lethal factor (LF), is suspected to be a metalloprotease, but no physiological substrates have been identified. Here it is shown that LF is a protease that cleaves the amino terminus of mitogen-activated protein kinase kinases 1 and 2 (MAPKK1 and MAPKK2) and that this cleavage inactivates MAPKK1 and inhibits the MAPK signal transduction pathway. The identification of a cleavage site for LF may facilitate the development of LF inhibitors.

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Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI

Anthrax toxin: structures, functions and tumour targeting.

TL;DR: Modification of the toxin’s proteolytic activation site limits its cytotoxicity to certain cell types and creates a versatile method of treatment.
Journal ArticleDOI

Acceleration of epithelial cell syndecan-1 shedding by anthrax hemolytic virulence factors

TL;DR: The concerted acceleration of shedding by several virulence factors could represent a new pathogenic mechanism contributing to disruption of epithelial or endothelial integrity, hemorrhage, edema and abnormal cell signaling during anthrax infection.
Journal ArticleDOI

The metalloproteolytic activity of the anthrax lethal factor is substrate-inhibited.

TL;DR: The proteolytic activity of LF has been investigated using novel chromogenic MAPKK-derived peptide substrates, which allowed us to determine the kinetic parameters of the reaction.
Journal ArticleDOI

Mechanism of Mitosis-specific Activation of MEK1

TL;DR: A detailed analysis of the activity of all components of the Ras/Raf/MEK/ERK pathway in HeLa cells during normal G2/M progression demonstrates that cyclin B-Cdc2 activity regulates signaling through the MAPK pathways in mitosis.
Journal ArticleDOI

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde: a short history of anthrax.

TL;DR: The anthrax letters crisis, following the discovery of a major bacterial warfare program in the USSR and the realization that Irak had been on the verge of using anthrax as a weapon during the first Gulf war, had the consequence of putting anthrax back on the agenda of scientists.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI

A synthetic inhibitor of the mitogen-activated protein kinase cascade.

TL;DR: Results indicate that the MAPK pathway is essential for growth and maintenance of the ras-transformed phenotype and PD 098059 is an invaluable tool that will help elucidate the role of theMAPK cascade in a variety of biological settings.
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Cyclin is degraded by the ubiquitin pathway

TL;DR: Cyclin degradation is the key step governing exit from mitosis and progress into the next cell cycle, and anaphase may be triggered by the recognition of cyclin by the ubiquitin-conjugating system.
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Transformation of mammalian cells by constitutively active MAP kinase kinase

TL;DR: It is found that constitutive activation of MAPKK is sufficient to promote cell transformation and is associated with highly tumorigenic in nude mice.
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Anthrax toxin edema factor: a bacterial adenylate cyclase that increases cyclic AMP concentrations of eukaryotic cells.

TL;DR: It is shown here that EF is an adenylate cyclase [ATP pyrophosphate-lyase (cyclizing), EC 4.6.1] produced by Bacillus anthracis in an inactive form and nearly equals that of the most active known cyclase.
Journal ArticleDOI

Multiple Ras functions can contribute to mammalian cell transformation.

TL;DR: Results indicate that multiple cellular components, including Raf1, are activated by Ha-Ras and contribute to Ha- Ras-induced mammalian cell transformation.
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