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A non-enzymatic p21 protein inhibitor of stress-activated protein kinases

Nature volume 381, pages 804–807 (1996)Cite this article

Abstract

THE stress-activated protein kinases (SAPKs), which are identical to the c-Jun amino-terminal kinases (JNKs), are activated in response to a variety of cellular stresses, including DNA damage, heat shock or tumour-necrosis factor-α1,2. SAPK, a subfamily of the mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinases, is a major protein kinase that phosphorylates c-Jun and other transcription factors2–5. SAPK phosphorylation of transcription factors is important in stress-activated signalling cascades1–6. Here we report that the protein p21WAF1/CIP1/Sdil, a DNA-damage-inducible cell-cycle inhibitor7–10, acts as an inhibitor of the SAPK group of mammalian MAP kinases. This highlights a new biochemical activity of p21, which may provide the first evidence for a non-enzymatic inhibitory protein for SAPK. We suggest that p21, by inhibiting SAPK, may participate in regulating signalling cascades that are activated by cellular stresses such as DNA damage.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Cell Biology Laboratory, Hanhyo Institutes of Technology, Daiya-dong, san-6, Sihung-shi, Kyongki-do, 429-010, Korea

    Jaekyung Shim, Heejeong Lee, Jihyun Park, Hanshin Kim & Eui-Ju Choi

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  1. Jaekyung Shim
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Correspondence to Eui-Ju Choi.

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Shim, J., Lee, H., Park, J. et al. A non-enzymatic p21 protein inhibitor of stress-activated protein kinases. Nature 381, 804–807 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1038/381804a0

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