AP-1 (activator protein 1) activity is strongly induced in response to numerous signals, including growth factors, cytokines and extracellular stresses. The proto-oncoprotein c-Jun belongs to the AP-1 group of transcription factors and it is a crucial regulator of intestinal progenitor proliferation and tumorigenesis. An important mechanism of AP-1 stimulation is phosphorylation of c-Jun by the Jun amino-terminal kinases (JNKs). N-terminal phosphorylation of the c-Jun transactivation domain increases target gene transcription, but a molecular explanation was elusive. Here we show that unphosphorylated, but not N-terminally phosphorylated c-Jun, interacts with Mbd3 and thereby recruits the nucleosome remodelling and histone deacetylation (NuRD) repressor complex. Mbd3 depletion in colon cancer cells increased histone acetylation at AP-1-dependent promoters, which resulted in increased target gene expression. The intestinal stem cell marker lgr5 was identified as a novel target gene controlled by c-Jun/Mbd3. Gut-specific conditional deletion of mbd3 (mbd3(ΔG/ΔG) mice) stimulated c-Jun activity and increased progenitor cell proliferation. In response to inflammation, mdb3 deficiency resulted in colonic hyperproliferation and mbd3(ΔG/ΔG) mice showed markedly increased susceptibility to colitis-induced tumorigenesis. Notably, concomitant inactivation of a single allele of c-jun reverted physiological and pathological hyperproliferation, as well as the increased tumorigenesis in mbd3(ΔG/ΔG) mice. Thus the transactivation domain of c-Jun recruits Mbd3/NuRD to AP-1 target genes to mediate gene repression, and this repression is relieved by JNK-mediated c-Jun N-terminal phosphorylation.
Attempts to directly drug the important oncogene KRAS have met with limited success despite numerous efforts across industry and academia. The KRASG12C mutant represents an “Achilles heel” and has recently yielded to covalent targeting with small molecules that bind the mutant cysteine and create an allosteric pocket on GDP-bound RAS, locking it in an inactive state. A weak inhibitor at this site was optimized through conformational locking of a piperazine–quinazoline motif and linker modification. Subsequent introduction of a key methyl group to the piperazine resulted in enhancements in potency, permeability, clearance, and reactivity, leading to identification of a potent KRASG12C inhibitor with high selectivity and excellent cross-species pharmacokinetic parameters and in vivo efficacy.
The c-Jun/AP-1 transcription factor controls key cellular behaviours, including proliferation and apoptosis, in response to JNK and Ras/MAPK signalling. While the JNK pathway has been well characterised, the mechanism of activation by Ras was elusive. Here we identify the uncharacterised ubiquitin ligase Trim7 as a critical component of AP-1 activation via Ras. We found that MSK1 directly phosphorylates Trim7 in response to direct activation by the Ras–Raf–MEK–ERK pathway, and this modification stimulates Trim7 E3 ubiquitin ligase activity. Trim7 mediates Lys63-linked ubiquitination of the AP-1 coactivator RACO-1, leading to RACO-1 protein stabilisation. Consequently, Trim7 depletion reduces RACO-1 levels and AP-1-dependent gene expression. Moreover, transgenic overexpression of Trim7 increases lung tumour burden in a Ras-driven cancer model, and knockdown of Trim7 in established xenografts reduces tumour growth. Thus, phosphorylation-ubiquitination crosstalk between MSK1, Trim7 and RACO-1 completes the long sought-after mechanism linking growth factor signalling and AP-1 activation.
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