Most transitions in the eukaryotic cell cycle are catalyzed by cyclin-dependent kinases (Cdks, CDKs), complexes formed between a member of the Cdk family of protein kinases and a regulatory cyclin subunit. CDKs are among the most highly regulated enzymes known: Their activities are controlled through multiple mechanisms that include cyclin association, positive and negative phosphorylation even...

The activity of cyclin dependent kinases (CDKs), which are key regulators of the eukaryotic cell cycle, is regulated through post-translational mechanisms, including binding of a cyclin and phosphorylation. Previously studies have shown that Leishmania mexicana CRK3 is an essential CDK that is a functional homologue of human CDK1. In this study, recombinant histidine tagged L. mexicana CRK3 and...

Cyclin-dependent kinase subunit (CKS) proteins interact with cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs) with high affinity. Mammalian CKS1 and CKS2 bind CDK1 and CDK2 and partake in the control of cell cycle progression. We identified CKS-interacting proteins by affinity purification followed by mass spectrometry in the human lymphocytic cell line Ramos. Apart from known interactors, such as CDKs, we iden...

We have examined the effects of NGF on components of the PC12 cell cycle machinery. We show that NGF represses over 6-8 d the levels of specific cdk kinase proteins and the G2-M phase specific cyclin B1 and the S phase marker PCNA as well as the level of phosphorylation of the retinoblastoma (Rb) protein. All of these changes may provide a basis for a NGF block to cell cycling. Unexpectedly, th...

Cell cycle deregulation is common in human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). To ensure proper cell cycle controlling, cyclin/cyclin-dependent kinases (CDK) complexes are tightly regulated by CDK inhibitors (CKIs) in normal cells. However, insufficient cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 1B (CDKN1B, also known as p27Kip1) and CDKN1C (p57Kip2) proteins are characteristics of high-risk HCC. In two HCC...

Mammalian fibroblasts require mitogens in order to exit from G0 (quiescence) and progress through the G1 phase of the cell cycle, although once they pass the restriction point late in G1 they can enter S phase and complete the cell cycle without mitogens [1]. Mitogenic signals are integrated through the GTPase Ras, which regulates the levels of cyclin D1 [2-5], a component of the cell cycle mac...

The cyclin D1-cyclin-dependent kinase 4 (CDK4) complex is a key regulator of the transition through the G(1) phase of the cell cycle. Among the cyclin/CDKs, CDK4 and cyclin D1 are the most frequently activated by somatic genetic alterations in multiple tumor types. Thus, aberrant regulation of the CDK4/cyclin D1 pathway plays an essential role in oncogenesis; hence, CDK4 is a genetically valida...

Pho85 is a versatile cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) found in budding yeast that regulates a myriad of eukaryotic cellular functions in concert with 10 cyclins (called Pcls). Unlike cell cycle CDKs that require phosphorylation of a serine/threonine residue by a CDK-activating kinase (CAK) for full activation, Pho85 requires no phosphorylation despite the presence of an equivalent residue. The Pho...

BACKGROUND The eukaryotic cell cycle begins with a burst of cyclin-dependent kinase (Cdk) phosphorylation. In budding yeast, several Cdk substrates are preferentially phosphorylated at the G1/S transition rather than later in the cell cycle when Cdk activity levels are high. These early Cdk substrates include signaling proteins in the pheromone response pathway. Two such proteins, Ste5 and Ste2...

p21 (p21) functions as a cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) inhibitor and is a key mediator of p53-dependent growth arrest. However, its role in cell cycle regulation is complex, because it also appears to promote CDK activity in certain experimental contexts. Its potential role in tumor suppression was evaluated in MMTV-ras and MMTV-myc transgenic mice that were interbred to p21 knockout mice (p21 ...