Tohru Kozasa

Members of the regulators of G protein signaling (RGS) family stimulate the intrinsic guanosine triphosphatase (GTPase) activity of the alpha subunits of certain heterotrimeric guanine nucleotide-binding proteins (G proteins). The guanine nucleotide exchange factor (GEF) for Rho, p115 RhoGEF, has an amino-terminal region with similarity to RGS proteins. Recombinant p115 RhoGEF and a fusion protein containing the amino terminus of p115 had specific activity as GTPase activating proteins toward the alpha subunits of the G proteins G12 and G13, but not toward members of the Gs, Gi, or Gq subfamilies of Galpha proteins. This GEF may act as an intermediary in the regulation of Rho proteins by G13 and G12.

Signaling pathways that link extracellular factors to activation of the monomeric guanosine triphosphatase (GTPase) Rho control cytoskeletal rearrangements and cell growth. Heterotrimeric guanine nucleotide-binding proteins (G proteins) participate in several of these pathways, although their mechanisms are unclear. The GTPase activities of two G protein alpha subunits, Galpha12 and Galpha13, are stimulated by the Rho guanine nucleotide exchange factor p115 RhoGEF. Activated Galpha13 bound tightly to p115 RhoGEF and stimulated its capacity to catalyze nucleotide exchange on Rho. In contrast, activated Galpha12 inhibited stimulation by Galpha13. Thus, p115 RhoGEF can directly link heterotrimeric G protein alpha subunits to regulation of Rho.

The Hippo pathway was initially discovered in Drosophila melanogaster as a key regulator of tissue growth. It is an evolutionarily conserved signaling cascade regulating numerous biological processes, including cell growth and fate decision, organ size ...Read More

The gene for Gs alpha (the alpha subunit of the guanine nucleotide-binding protein Gs) was isolated from human genomic libraries using rat Gs alpha cDNA as a probe. Comparison of the nucleotide sequence of the human gene with that of the rat cDNA revealed that the human Gs alpha gene spans approximately equal to 20 kilobases and is composed of 13 exons and 12 introns. Genomic Southern blot analysis suggests that the human haploid genome contains a single Gs alpha gene. Previous reports indicated the presence of multiple species of Gs alpha cDNA. The structure of the human Gs alpha gene suggests that four types of Gs alpha mRNAs may be generated from a single Gs alpha gene by alternate use of exon 3 and/or of two 3' splice sites of intron 3, where an unusual splice junction sequence (TG) instead of the consensus (AG) is used. S1 nuclease mapping analysis of human Gs alpha mRNA identified multiple transcriptional initiation sites. The promoter region of the human Gs alpha gene has extremely high G + C content (85%). It contains 4 "GC" boxes, but no typical "TATA" or "CAAT" box sequence. In the 5' flanking region, there are several blocks of sequences that are similar to the sequences of the 5' flanking region of the human c-Ki-ras2 gene.

RGS proteins constitute a newly appreciated and large group of negative regulators of G protein signaling. Four members of the RGS family act as GTPase-activating proteins (GAPs) with apparent specificity for members of the Gi alpha subfamily of G protein subunits. We demonstrate here that two RGS proteins, RGS4 and GAIP, also act as GAPs for Gq alpha, the G alpha protein responsible for activation of phospholipase C beta. Furthermore, these RGS proteins block activation of phospholipase C beta by guanosine 5'-(3-O-thio) triphosphate-Gq alpha. GAP activity does not explain this effect, which apparently results from occlusion of the binding site on G alpha for effector. Inhibitory effects of RGS proteins on G protein-mediated signaling pathways can be demonstrated by simple mixture of RGS4 or GAIP with plasma membranes.