Phosphorylation of β-catenin by AKT promotes β-catenin transcriptional activity

Dexing Fang, David Hawke, Yanhua Zheng, Yan Xia, Jill Meisenhelder, Heinz Nika, Gordon B. Mills, Ryuji Kobayashi, Tony Hunter, Zhimin Lu

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

713 Scopus citations

Abstract

Increased transcriptional activity of β-catenin resulting from Wnt/Wingless-dependent or -independent signaling has been detected in many types of human cancer, but the underlying mechanism of Wnt-independent regulation is poorly understood. We have demonstrated that AKT, which is activated downstream from epidermal growth factor receptor signaling, phosphorylates β-catenin at Ser552 in vitro and in vivo. AKT-mediated phosphorylation of β-catenin causes its disassociation from cell-cell contacts and accumulation in both the cytosol and the nucleus and enhances its interaction with 14-3-3ζ via a binding motif containing Ser552. Phosphorylation of β-catenin by AKT increases its transcriptional activity and promotes tumor cell invasion, indicating that AKT-dependent regulation of β-catenin plays a critical role in tumor invasion and development.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)11221-11229
Number of pages9
JournalJournal of Biological Chemistry
Volume282
Issue number15
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 13 2007
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Biochemistry
  • Molecular Biology
  • Cell Biology

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Phosphorylation of β-catenin by AKT promotes β-catenin transcriptional activity'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this