Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is considered to be an advancing antitumor technology. PDT using hydrophilic/lipophilic tetra‑α-(4-carboxyphenoxy) phthalocyanine zinc (TαPcZn-PDT) has exhibited antitumor activity in Bel-7402 hepatocellular cancer cells. However, the manner in which p38 MAPK and caspase-9 are involved in the regulation of mitochondria-mediated apoptosis in the TαPcZn-PDT-treated LoVo...

Background: Advanced papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) and anaplastic (ATC) are the leading causes of endocrine death. Mutations in MAP kinase (MAPK) pathway common PTC ATC. Recently, combination dabrafenib (BRAFi) trametinib (MEKi) was approved for treatment BRAF-mutant However, combined BRAF/ MEK inhibition is rarely curative ATC patients has had limited responses PTC. Here, we identify an induc...

Diabetes mellitus (DM) and its accompanying chronic inflammation promote tumor progression. p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) is an essential kinase for inflammation. The effects of p38 MAPK on epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT)-mediated diabetic pancreatic cancer metastasis remain unclear. Here, we demonstrate that p38 MAPK phosphorylation was significantly increased in pancreat...

Diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM) is a major complication of diabetes that contributes to an increase in mortality. A number of mechanisms potentially explain the development of DCM including oxidative stress, inflammation and extracellular fibrosis. Mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK)-mediated signaling pathways are common among these pathogenic responses. Among the diverse array of kinases, e...

Neutrophils constitutively undergo apoptosis at both normal and inflamed sites: an important process that limits the toxic potential of the neutrophil. However, the signal pathway for neutrophil apoptosis is currently unknown. In this study, we evaluated the role of p38-mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) in the spontaneous apoptosis of neutrophils in vitro. We found that p38-MAPK was const...

Signaling through mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascades is a conserved and fundamental process in all eukaryotes. This chapter reviews recent progress made in the identification of components of MAPK signaling networks using novel large scale experimental methods. It also presents recent landmarks in the computational modeling and simulation of the dynamics of MAPK signaling modules....

Stimulation of guinea pig neutrophils with platelet-activating factor (PAF) caused a rapid and transient activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK). Wortmannin, an inhibitor of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase, partially (approximately 50%) inhibited PAF-induced MAPK activation. Half-maximal inhibition was observed with 200-300 nM wortmannin, while it did not inhibit phorbol ester-induc...

Axonal death disrupts functional connectivity of neural circuits and is a critical feature of many neurodegenerative disorders. Pathological axon degeneration often occurs independently of known programmed death pathways, but the underlying molecular mechanisms remain largely unknown. Using traumatic injury as a model, we systematically investigate mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) famili...

The p38α mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) has become an attractive target for the treatment of many diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease and Crohn's disease. In this paper, 3D-QSAR and molecular docking studies were performed on 59 p38α MAPK inhibitors. Comparative molecular field analysis (CoMFA) and comparative molecular similarity indices analysis (CoMSIA)...

The physiological role of vesicular zinc at central glutamatergic synapses remains poorly understood. Here we show that mice lacking the synapse-specific vesicular zinc transporter ZnT3 (ZnT3KO mice) have reduced activation of the Erk1/2 MAPK in hippocampal mossy fiber terminals, disinhibition of zinc-sensitive MAPK tyrosine phosphatase activity, and impaired MAPK signaling during hippocampus-d...