The cyclase-associated protein CAP as regulator of cell polarity and cAMP signaling in Dictyostelium.

Cyclase associated protein CAP in the regulation of the actin cytoskeleton and cell polarity in Dictyostelium discoideum

Protein kinase A regulates the Ras, Rap1 and TORC2 pathways in response to the chemoattractant cAMP in Dictyostelium.

Efficient directed migration requires tight regulation of chemoattractant signal transduction pathways in both space and time, but the mechanisms involved in such regulation are not well understood. Here, we investigated the role of protein kinase A (PKA) in controlling signaling of the chemoattractant cAMP in Dictyostelium discoideum We found that cells lacking PKA display severe chemotaxis de...

Phosphorylation of chemoattractant receptors regulates chemotaxis, actin reorganization and signal relay

Migratory cells, including mammalian leukocytes and Dictyostelium, use G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) signaling to regulate MAPK/ERK, PI3K, TORC2/AKT, adenylyl cyclase and actin polymerization, which collectively direct chemotaxis. Upon ligand binding, mammalian GPCRs are phosphorylated at cytoplasmic residues, uncoupling G-protein pathways, but activating other pathways. However, connection...

Crystallization of cyclase-associated protein from Dictyostelium discoideum.

Cyclase-associated protein (CAP) is a conserved two-domain protein that helps to activate the catalytic activity of adenylyl cyclase in the cyclase-bound state through interaction with Ras, which binds to the cyclase in a different region. With its other domain, CAP can bind monomeric actin and therefore also carries a cytoskeletal function. The protein is thus involved in Ras/cAMP-dependent si...

A novel Ras-interacting protein required for chemotaxis and cyclic adenosine monophosphate signal relay in Dictyostelium.

We have identified a novel Ras-interacting protein from Dictyostelium, RIP3, whose function is required for both chemotaxis and the synthesis and relay of the cyclic AMP (cAMP) chemoattractant signal. rip3 null cells are unable to aggregate and lack receptor activation of adenylyl cyclase but are able, in response to cAMP, to induce aggregation-stage, postaggregative, and cell-type-specific gen...