Axin- mediated CKI phosphorylation of beta-catenin at Ser 45: a molecular switch for the Wnt pathway.
The Wnt pathway controls numerous developmental processes via the beta-catenin- TCF/LEF transcription complex. Deregulation of the pathway results in the aberrant accumulation of beta-catenin in the nucleus, often leading to cancer. Normally, cytoplasmic beta-catenin associates with APC and axin and is continuously phosphorylated by GSK-3beta, marking it for proteasomal degradation. Wnt signaling is considered to prevent GSK-3beta from phosphorylating beta-catenin, thus causing its stabilization. However, the Wnt mechanism of action has not been resolved. Here we study the regulation of beta-catenin phosphorylation and degradation by the Wnt pathway. Using mass spectrometry and phosphopeptide-specific antibodies, we show that a complex of axin and casein kinase I ( CKI) induces beta-catenin phosphorylation at a single site: serine 45 (S45). Immunopurified axin and recombinant CKI phosphorylate beta-catenin in vitro at S45; CKI inhibition suppresses this phosphorylation in vivo. CKI phosphorylation creates a priming site for GSK-3beta and is both necessary and sufficient to initiate the beta-catenin phosphorylation-degradation cascade. Wnt3A signaling and Dvl overexpression suppress S45 phosphorylation, thereby precluding the initiation of the cascade. Thus, a single, CKI-dependent phosphorylation event serves as a molecular switch for the Wnt pathway.[1]References
- Axin-mediated CKI phosphorylation of beta-catenin at Ser 45: a molecular switch for the Wnt pathway. Amit, S., Hatzubai, A., Birman, Y., Andersen, J.S., Ben-Shushan, E., Mann, M., Ben-Neriah, Y., Alkalay, I. Genes Dev. (2002) [Pubmed]
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