Different specificities of spleen tyrosine protein kinases for synthetic peptide substrates

Protein tyrosine kinases: structure, substrate specificity, and drug discovery

Protein tyrosine kinases (PTKs) play a crucial role in many cell regulatory processes. It is therefore not surprising to see that functional perturbation of PTKs results in many diseases. Despite the diverse primary structure organization of various PTKs, the catalytic or kinase domains of various PTKs as well as that of Ser/Thr kinases are generally conserved. The high resolution crystal structure of a few PTKs has been solved in the last few years. In contrast to the well-defined linear peptide substrate motifs recognized by specific Ser/Thr kinases, the identification of specific substrate motifs for PTK has been slow. It is not until recently that through the use of combinatorial peptide library methods that specific recognition motifs for specific PTKs have begun to emerge. Efficient and specific peptide substrates for some PTKs with Km at the mid microM range have been identified. Based on these peptide substrates, relatively potent (IC50 at the low microM range) and highly selective pseudosubstrate-based peptide inhibitors have been developed. There has been enormous effort in the development of PTK inhibitors for diseases such as cancer, psoriasis, and osteoporosis. Several new high-throughput PTK assay technologies have recently been described. Small molecules against specific PTK have been developed. Most of them are competitive inhibitors at the ATP binding site. Some of these inhibitors have already been in clinical trial.

Sequence specificity of C-terminal Src kinase (CSK)--a comparison with Src-related kinases c-Fgr and Lyn

An eicosapeptide encompassing the C-terminal tail of c-Src (Tyr527) which is conserved in most Src-related protein kinases, is phosphorylated by C-terminal Src kinase (CSK) and by the two Src-related protein kinases c-Fgr and Lyn, with similar kinetic constants. Two related peptides reproducing the C-terminal segments of c-Src mutants defective in CSK phosphorylation [MacAuley, A., Okada, M., Nada, S., Nakagawa, H. & Cooper, J. A. (1993) Oncogene 8, 117-124] AFLEDSCTGTEPLYQRGENL (mutant number 28) and AFLEDNFTGTKPQYHPGENL (mutant number 29), proved a better and a much worse substrates, respectively than the wild-type peptide, with either CSK or the two Src kinases. By changing individual residues in the best peptide substrate, it was shown that the main element responsible for its improved phosphorylation is leucine at position -1 (instead of glutamine), while lysine at position -3 (instead of glutamate) has a detrimental effect, possibly accounting for the negligible phosphorylation of peptide derived from mutant number 29. By contrast to most peptide substrates, including the Src C-terminal peptides, which exhibit relatively high K(m) values, a polyoma-virus-middle-T-antigen-(mT)-derived peptide with tyrosine embedded in a highly hydrophobic sequence (EEEPQFEEIPIYLELLP) exhibits with CSK a quite low K(m) value (63 microM). Consistent with this, the optimal sequence selected by CSK in an oriented peptide library is XXXIYMFFF. This is different from sequences selected by Lyn (DEEIYEELX) and c-Fgr (XEEIYGIFF), although they all share a high selection for a hydrophobic residue at n-1. In sharp contrast, TPKIIB/p38syk, related to the catalytic domain of p72syk, selects acidic residues at nearly all positions, n-1 included. These data support the notion that the features determining the specific phosphorylation of the C-terminal tyrosine residue of Src do not reside in the primary structure surrounding the target tyrosine. They also show that this site does not entirely fulfil the optimal consensus sequence recognized by CSK, disclosing the possibility that as yet unrecognized CSK targets structurally unrelated to the C-terminal tyrosine residue of Src kinases may exist.

Tyrosine protein kinase assays

Protein kinases form a large family of enzymes that play a major role in a number of live processes. The study of their action is important for the understanding of the transformation mechanisms and of the normal and pathological growth events. The quality of an enzyme assay is often the key point of an enzymatic study. It must be flexible and compatible with various experimental conditions, such as those for the purification process, the screening of inhibitors and the substrate specificity studies. As will be shown in the present review, two categories of substrates, peptidic and proteic, should be distinguished. The use of peptide substrates facilitates the determination of the recognition requirements of the enzyme and of the kinetic effects of even minute variations in their sequence. These linear peptide structures are assumed to mimic a complex interaction between the enzyme and a protein substrate in which distant amino acids in the sequence are vicinal in the folded substrate. Less amenable to a systematic study, but probably more adequate to investigate the natural substrate of a given kinase, are the proteic substrates. Obviously the tools to measure protein kinase activities are not the same in these two cases. The main difficulty in assaying protein kinases is the use of labelled gamma-ATP, mostly at large excess concentration, since the final product of the reaction has to be separated from the non-reacted labelled ATP. In the case of peptide substrates, the difficulty is to separate them from ATP basing on differences of molecular mass. Despite the efforts of many investigators to rely upon differences in solubility, in charges or in "affinity", this separation, which is crucial for the assay, is still an unsolved experimental problem. Chromatographic, as well as electrophoretic assays appeared relatively late in this domain, and more work in assessing new methodologies might bring new breakthroughs in the next few years. Specific, simple and reliable kinase assays are still a major challenge. Their improvement will help to conduct specificity studies, to elucidate complex growth mechanisms in which they are involved and to discover more selective potent inhibitors.

Hierarchical phosphorylation of a 50-kDa protein by protein tyrosine kinases TPK-IIB and C-Fgr, and its identification as HS1 hematopoietic-lineage cell-specific protein

TPK-IIB is an acidophilic protein tyrosine kinase devoid of autophosphorylation activity and unrelated to the Src family kinases [Marin, O., Donella-Deana, A., Brunati, A.M., Fischer, S. & Pinna, L. A. (1991) J. Biol. Chem. 266, 17798-17803]. Here, we describe the purification to homogeneity of a 50-kDa prominent substrate (p50) of TPK-IIB from rat spleen homogenates. Microsequence analysis of fragments from purified p50 discloses its homology to HS1, a hematopoietic-lineage cell-specific protein implicated in B-cell-antigen receptor-mediated signalling [Yamanashi, Y., Okada, M., Semba, T., Yamori, T., Umemori, H., Tsunasawa, S., Toyoshima, K., Kitamura, D., Watanabe, T. & Yamamoto, T. (1993) Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 90, 3631-3635]. p50 is an excellent substrate for TPK-IIB, exhibiting very favourable kinetic constants (Km = 0.07 microM, kcat = 1.5) and incorporating up to 4 mol P/mol protein. p50 is, however, a weak substrate for the Src-related protein kinases Lyn and c-Fgr. Once phosphorylated by TPK-IIB, however, p50 is converted into a good substrate for c-Fgr and, to a lesser extent, for Lyn. p50 phosphorylated by TPK-IIB associates with c-Fgr and Lyn, as judged by co-immunoprecipitation with anti-Fgr IgG and anti-Lyn IgG, respectively. These data suggest the involvement of TPK-IIB in B-cell-antigen receptor-mediated signalling, and support the idea that phosphorylation by TPK-IIB might be a prerequisite for the recruitment of certain protein substrates by Src-related protein tyrosine kinases.

The extraordinary active site substrate specificity of pp60c-src. A multiple specificity protein kinase

We report the first active site substrate specificity analysis of a tyrosine-specific protein kinase, namely pp60c-src. Like the cAMP-dependent protein kinase and protein kinase C, pp60c-src will phosphorylate an assortment of achiral residues attached to active site-directed peptides. Furthermore, pp60c-src phosphorylates both aromatic and aliphatic alcohols. However, the substrate specificity of pp60c-src is much broader than that of the two previously examined serine/threonine-specific protein kinases. We have previously shown that both the cAMP-dependent protein kinase and protein kinase C will utilize a wide array of non-amino acid residues as substrates, as long as the distance between the hydroxyl moiety and the adjacent peptide backbone is comparable with that present in serine and threonine (Kwon, Y.-G., Mendelow, M., and Lawrence, D. S. (1994) J. Biol. Chem. 269, 4839-4844). In marked contrast, pp60c-src does not discriminate against substrates on the basis of chain length, catalyzing the phosphorylation of residues that contain anywhere from 2-12 carbons between the alcohol functional group and the adjacent peptide bond. In addition, pp60c-src phosphorylates L-serine in an active site-directed peptide. The possible structural basis for the multiple specificity of pp60c-src is discussed. Finally, the active site specificity of pp60c-src is not just limited to L-amino acid residues, but also extends into the realm of D-amino acids as well.

Tyrosine protein kinase inhibition and cancer

The various aspects of the research on tyrosine protein kinase inhibition and its connections with cancer are presented. The emphasis was made on the theoretical low toxic side effects of specific tyrosine protein kinase inhibitors. Particularly, the strategy of finding peptidic substrate-derived inhibitors or modulators is discussed, with an almost complete compendium of the tyrosine protein kinase peptidic substrates published so far. A series of data has been gathered that may serve as a basis for the discovery of selective and specific tyrosine protein kinase inhibitors by screening on molecular and cellular models. The potential of SH2 domain-interfering agents are also presented as a promising route to new anticancer compounds.

Substrate phosphorylation capacities of the major tyrosine protein kinase from the human promyelocytic cell line, HL-60

The major tyrosine protein kinase, HPK40, isolated from HL-60, the preparation of which is described elsewhere (Ernould, A.P., Ferry, G., Barret, J.M., Genton, A. and Boutin, J.A., Eur. J. Biochem., 214, 503-514), was investigated as to its specificity on a number of peptides and proteins. It was found that HPK40 can phosphorylate histones (except histone H4), casein, acid-treated enolase, actin and tubulin but not calmodulin. Phosphorylation specificity of HPK40 was investigated using over a hundred peptidic structures. HPK40 is not related to the 'src' family and does not phosphorylate efficiently either the tetrapeptide NEYT derived from the pp60src autophosphorylation domain or the corresponding peptide RRsrc, RRLIED-NEYTARG. VALYDYESR from the SH3 domain of pp60c-src is recognized as a substrate with a high phosphorylation level. DEDYIQD, derived from the phosvitin/casein kinase II, was also highly phosphorylated. In order to determine the minimal recognition sequence of HPK40, the phosphorylation of about 60 dito tetrapeptides was investigated. Some of the tetrapeptides, such as *EEYE and NEYE, were well phosphorylated. Even some tripeptides, such as EYE, DYM, TYS and KYE, were recognized by HPK40, while none of the tested dipeptides was recognized as substrate. Sequences of peptides from DRVYHPF (angiotensin), LEEEEEAYGWMDF (minigastrin) and QEEYSAM (from H-ras1) were examined as substrates. The presence of one or several acidic residues on the N alpha-side of tyrosine residue was identified as the only apparently favorable determinant.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Design of a potent peptide inhibitor of the epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase utilizing sequences based on the natural phosphorylation sites of phospholipase C-gamma 1

Peptides that possess primary sequences identical to segments surrounding the natural phosphorylation sites of phospholipase C-gamma 1 (i.e., tyrosines 472, 771, 783, and 1284) have been synthesized and evaluated with respect to substrate kinetics for the epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase. A peptide that was based on tyrosine 472 was the superior substrate in terms of lowest Km value at 37 microM and had the following amino acid sequence: Lys-His-Lys-Lys-Leu-Ala-Glu-Gly-Ser-Ala-Tyr472-Glu-Glu-Val. This peptide sequence was used as a foundation to make amino acid substitutions and/or chemical modifications directed toward the synthesis of a potent peptide inhibitor. As a result, a nine amino acid peptide was synthesized having a K(i) of 10 microM.

Phosphorylated residues as specificity determinants for an acidophilic protein tyrosine kinase. A study with src and cdc2 derived phosphopeptides

Spleen TPK-IIB is an acidophilic protein tyrosine kinase, devoid of autophosphorylation activity, whose phosphorylation of the src-peptide NEYTA is crucially specified by Glu-2[(1991) J. Biol. Chem. 266, 17798-17803]. We show that phosphothreonine, phosphotyrosine and phosphoserine are, in this order, specificity determinants even more effective than glutamic acid if they are replacing Glu-2, to give the phosphopeptides NTpYTA, NYpYTA, NSpYTA, respectively. Non-phosphorylated threonine, tyrosine and serine are conversely ineffective. Consequently also the heptapeptide GEGTYGV reproducing the phosphoacceptor and inhibitory site of p34cdc2 is not appreciably affected by TPK-IIB, unless its threonyl residue is previously phosphorylated, the phosphoderivative GEGTpYGV being readily phosphorylated at its tyrosyl residue. Such a behaviour is unique for TPK-IIB among the protein tyrosine kinases tested (lyn-TPK, fgr-TPK and EGF-receptor, besides TPK-IIB). These data provide the first evidence that, in some instances, the targeting by protein tyrosine kinases can be specifically determined by the previous phosphorylation of the peptide substrate, thus extending the concept of 'hierarchal phosphorylation' [(1991) J. Biol. Chem. 266, 14139-14142] to tyrosyl residues as well.

Purification and characterization of the major tyrosine protein kinase from the human promyelocytic cell line, HL60

The major tyrosine protein kinase from HL60 (a human non-differentiated promyelocytic cell line) has been purified almost to homogeneity as judged by silver-stained SDS/PAGE. The procedure involved four chromatographic steps: DEAE-Sepharose, casein-agarose, cibacron-blue--agarose and hexyl-agarose. The purification resulted in more than 1000-fold enrichment in angiotensin II phosphorylation activity. A gel-sizing experiment, labeling with [35S]ATP[gamma s] and autophosphorylation of the enzyme in the presence of [gamma-32P]ATP, all led to the identification of a single protein species with a molecular mass of about 40 kDa. Western blot experiments showed that this protein does not belong to the src family and is not related to the abl and fes oncogene products. Phosphorylation of angiotensin II and casein by this 40-kDa human promyelocytic kinase was stimulated by high ionic strength especially from class IA metal salts. The Km for ATP was 2 microM and the Vmax 3.1 nmol.min-1.mg-1 using angiotensin II as a substrate. The kinase requires the presence of either Mn2+ or Mg2+ for full activity and utilizes ATP or dATP but not GTP as phosphate donor. Based on numerous biochemical observations, it was possible to demonstrate that kinase is different from any other tyrosine protein kinases described in the literature. This 40-kDa protein was used as a molecular tool for testing some tyrosine protein kinase inhibitors described in the literature. It is one of the rare tyrosine protein kinases purified from human cancer cells to date.

Selective effect of poly(lysine) on the enhancement of the lyn tyrosine protein kinase activity. Increased specificity toward src peptides

A tyrosine protein kinase (TPK-I), isolated from rat spleen [Brunati, A. M. & Pinna, L. A. (1988) Eur. J. Biochem. 172, 451-457] and recently identified as the product of the lyn oncogene [Brunati, A. M., Donella-Deana, A., Ralph, S., Marchiori, F., Borin, G., Fischer, S. & Pinna, L. A. (1991) Biochim. Biophys. Acta 1901, 123-126], is stimulated by a variety of effectors, including poly(lysine), heparin and very high NaCl concentrations. The efficacy of these compounds is variably dependent on the nature of the phosphoacceptor peptide substrates. Here we show that poly(lysine), but neither NaCl nor heparin, specifically enhances the phosphorylation efficiency of lyn TPK for the peptide EDNEYTA (src peptide). It reproduces the main autophosphorylation site of pp60c-src (Tyr416), which is entirely conserved in lyn TPK. The favourable effect of poly(lysine) is accounted for by both a dramatic drop of the Km value (70 microM versus 670 microM) and more than a threefold increase in Vmax. The effect is not so evident with a variety of different peptides, either unrelated to the src peptide (e.g. angiotensin II, AAYAA) or derived from the src peptide by single or multiple substitutions of the residues located on the N-terminal side of tyrosine. In particular, the responsiveness to poly(lysine) is dramatically reduced whenever alanine is replaced for either asparagine at position -2 or glutamic acid at position -1, either in the src heptapeptide or in its shorter derivative, the pentapeptide NEYTA. In sharp contrast, the favourable effect of 2 M NaCl, which is invariably accounted for only by an increased Vmax, is especially evident with peptides like angiotensin II and AAYAA, whose phosphorylation is less sensitive to poly(lysine) stimulation. The phosphorylation of the src peptides are actually inhibited rather than stimulated by 2 M NaCl. Consistent with this, lyn TPK autophosphorylation is also dramatically stimulated by poly(lysine) while being inhibited by 2 M NaCl. These data show that poly(lysine) deeply alters the selectivity of lyn TPK by conferring to it an enhanced activity and an especially high affinity toward peptides that reproduce the conserved autophosphorylation site of the TPK of the src family. It is suggested that endogenous compound, whose effect is mimicked by poly(lysine) in vitro, may play a relevant role in determining the specificity of lyn TPK in vivo and possibly of other TPK of the src family.

Identification of the phosphorylation sites of H2B histone by a catalytic fragment of p72syk from porcine spleen

Phosphorylated sites of calf thymus H2B histone were investigated with a catalytic fragment of 72 kDa protein-tyrosine kinase (p72syk). Three of five tyrosine residues in H2B histone can be phosphorylated by this kinase. In this analysis, H2B histone was thoroughly phosphorylated in vitro with [gamma-32P]ATP and the kinase, and then digested with a lysylendopeptidase. The resulting radioactive phosphopeptides were separated by a reverse-phase column on high performance liquid chromatography. Subsequent sequential Edman degradation of the purified phosphopeptides revealed that 40Y, 83Y and 121Y were phosphorylated. 121Y is the major phosphorylated residue in H2B histone. No phosphorylation was detected in 37Y and 42Y. Although the consensus sequence was not defined from these analyses, our data suggest that higher-order structure(s) in addition to primary one may participate in recognition of H2B histone by this protein kinase.

Substitution of phosphotyrosine for sulphotyrosine in biologically active peptides. Enzymatic phosphorylation of a progastrin peptide confers immunoreactivity reminiscent of the sulphated derivative

The peptide SAEEEDQYN, corresponding to the carboxyl-terminal tryptic fragment of rat progastrin, whose penultimate tyrosyl residue is sulphated in the native peptide, is phosphorylated with Km values of 120 and 180 microM by two spleen tyrosine protein kinases, termed TPK-IIB and TPK-III, respectively. Another spleen tyrosine protein kinase related to the src family (TPK-I/lyn) is poorly active toward this peptide, displaying a Km 6.5 mM. The Tyr-phosphorylated peptide is recognized by an antibody (L304), which reacts with both sulphated and unmodified peptides, while it is not recognized by a second antibody (L303), which reacts with unmodified peptide yet not with the sulphated derivative. These data, in conjunction with previous observations (Hofsteenge, J., Stone, S.R., Donella-Deana, A. and Pinna, L.A. (1990) Eur. J. Biochem. 188, 55-59) support the view that phosphotyrosine is an effective surrogate for sulphotyrosine in a wide spectrum of biological activities.

Specificity determinants for tyrosine protein kinase. A study with recombinant hirudin mutants

Hirudin, the powerful anticoagulant agent of leech (Hirudo medicinalis) saliva, was readily phosphorylated by two spleen tyrosine protein kinases (TPK-IIB and TPK-III) at Tyr63 with Km values of 238 microM and 74 microM, respectively. The synthetic tridecapeptide DGDFEEIPEEYLQ, corresponding to the hirudin 53-65 C-terminal fragment, was phosphorylated even more efficiently than hirudin itself. Four hirudin mutants, in which one or more of the glutamic acids at positions 57, 58, 61 and 62 have been replaced by glutamines, were poorer substrates than hirudin. The mutant in which all four glutamates were substituted, [Gln57,58,61,62]hirudin, was virtually not phosphorylated by either TPK-IIB and TPK-III. Substitution of Glu57 and Glu58 was less deleterious than substitution of the two glutamic acids adjacent to Tyr63: [Gln61,62]hirudin exhibited a 20-fold lower phosphorylation efficiency with TPK-IIB. With TPK-III, however, the Km value of [Gln61,62]hirudin was slightly lower, while the Vmax decreased sixfold. The substitution of Glu62 alone was also more detrimental with TPK-IIB than with TPK-III. The behaviour of a third spleen TPK, named lyn TPK-I and belonging to the src family, was markedly different in that it did not phosphorylate hirudin but exhibited significant activity towards [Gln57,58,61,62]hirudin. Taken together, these data confirm and extend with a protein substrate the results obtained with short model peptides which indicated the stringent substrate requirements of TPK-IIB (and of TPK-III to a lesser extent) for N-terminal acidic residues. In contrast, such residues are deleterious with lyn TPK-I. These observations also support the concept that tyrosine protein kinases recognize specificity determinants situated in the vicinity of the target residue rather than requiring higher-order structural features.