Skip to main content
PMC home page
Molecular and Cellular Biology logoLink to Molecular and Cellular Biology
. 1993 Jun;13(6):3301–3310. doi: 10.1128/mcb.13.6.3301

Tumor necrosis factor and interleukin-1 lead to phosphorylation and loss of I kappa B alpha: a mechanism for NF-kappa B activation.

A A Beg 1, T S Finco 1, P V Nantermet 1, A S Baldwin Jr 1
PMCID: PMC359784  PMID: 8497253

Abstract

Nuclear factor kappa B (NF-kappa B) is a critical regulator of several genes which are involved in immune and inflammation responses. NF-kappa B, consisting of a 50-kDa protein (p50) and a 65-kDa protein (p65), is bound to a cytoplasmic retention protein called I kappa B. Stimulation of cells with a variety of inducers, including cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor and interleukin-1, leads to the activation and the translocation of p50/65 NF-kappa B into the nucleus. However, the in vivo mechanism of the activation process remains unknown. Here, we provide the first evidence that the in vivo mechanism of NF-kappa B activation is through the phosphorylation and subsequent loss of its inhibitor, I kappa B alpha. We also show that both I kappa B alpha loss and NF-kappa B activation are inhibited in the presence of antioxidants, demonstrating that the loss of I kappa B alpha is a prerequisite for NF-kappa B activation. Finally, we demonstrate that I kappa B alpha is rapidly resynthesized after loss, indicating that an autoregulatory mechanism is involved in the regulation of NF-kappa B function. We propose a mechanism for the activation of NF-kappa B through the modification and loss of I kappa B alpha, thereby establishing its role as a mediator of NF-kappa B activation.

Full text

PDF
3301

Images in this article

3303Image
on p.3303
3304Image
on p.3304
3304Image
on p.3304
3305Image
on p.3305
3305Image
on p.3305
3306Image
on p.3306
3307Image
on p.3307
3307Image
on p.3307

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Badley J. E., Bishop G. A., St John T., Frelinger J. A. A simple, rapid method for the purification of poly A+ RNA. Biotechniques. 1988 Feb;6(2):114–116. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Baeuerle P. A., Baltimore D. A 65-kappaD subunit of active NF-kappaB is required for inhibition of NF-kappaB by I kappaB. Genes Dev. 1989 Nov;3(11):1689–1698. doi: 10.1101/gad.3.11.1689. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Baeuerle P. A., Baltimore D. Activation of DNA-binding activity in an apparently cytoplasmic precursor of the NF-kappa B transcription factor. Cell. 1988 Apr 22;53(2):211–217. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(88)90382-0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Baeuerle P. A., Baltimore D. I kappa B: a specific inhibitor of the NF-kappa B transcription factor. Science. 1988 Oct 28;242(4878):540–546. doi: 10.1126/science.3140380. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Ballard D. W., Dixon E. P., Peffer N. J., Bogerd H., Doerre S., Stein B., Greene W. C. The 65-kDa subunit of human NF-kappa B functions as a potent transcriptional activator and a _target for v-Rel-mediated repression. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1992 Mar 1;89(5):1875–1879. doi: 10.1073/pnas.89.5.1875. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Ballard D. W., Walker W. H., Doerre S., Sista P., Molitor J. A., Dixon E. P., Peffer N. J., Hannink M., Greene W. C. The v-rel oncogene encodes a kappa B enhancer binding protein that inhibits NF-kappa B function. Cell. 1990 Nov 16;63(4):803–814. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(90)90146-6. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Beg A. A., Ruben S. M., Scheinman R. I., Haskill S., Rosen C. A., Baldwin A. S., Jr I kappa B interacts with the nuclear localization sequences of the subunits of NF-kappa B: a mechanism for cytoplasmic retention. Genes Dev. 1992 Oct;6(10):1899–1913. doi: 10.1101/gad.6.10.1899. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Blank V., Kourilsky P., Israël A. Cytoplasmic retention, DNA binding and processing of the NF-kappa B p50 precursor are controlled by a small region in its C-terminus. EMBO J. 1991 Dec;10(13):4159–4167. doi: 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1991.tb04994.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Bomsztyk K., Rooney J. W., Iwasaki T., Rachie N. A., Dower S. K., Sibley C. H. Evidence that interleukin-1 and phorbol esters activate NF-kappa B by different pathways: role of protein kinase C. Cell Regul. 1991 Apr;2(4):329–335. doi: 10.1091/mbc.2.4.329. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Bours V., Villalobos J., Burd P. R., Kelly K., Siebenlist U. Cloning of a mitogen-inducible gene encoding a kappa B DNA-binding protein with homology to the rel oncogene and to cell-cycle motifs. Nature. 1990 Nov 1;348(6296):76–80. doi: 10.1038/348076a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Brown K., Park S., Kanno T., Franzoso G., Siebenlist U. Mutual regulation of the transcriptional activator NF-kappa B and its inhibitor, I kappa B-alpha. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1993 Mar 15;90(6):2532–2536. doi: 10.1073/pnas.90.6.2532. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Brownell E., Mittereder N., Rice N. R. A human rel proto-oncogene cDNA containing an Alu fragment as a potential coding exon. Oncogene. 1989 Jul;4(7):935–942. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Davis N., Ghosh S., Simmons D. L., Tempst P., Liou H. C., Baltimore D., Bose H. R., Jr Rel-associated pp40: an inhibitor of the rel family of transcription factors. Science. 1991 Sep 13;253(5025):1268–1271. doi: 10.1126/science.1891714. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Dressler K. A., Mathias S., Kolesnick R. N. Tumor necrosis factor-alpha activates the sphingomyelin signal transduction pathway in a cell-free system. Science. 1992 Mar 27;255(5052):1715–1718. doi: 10.1126/science.1313189. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Duh E. J., Maury W. J., Folks T. M., Fauci A. S., Rabson A. B. Tumor necrosis factor alpha activates human immunodeficiency virus type 1 through induction of nuclear factor binding to the NF-kappa B sites in the long terminal repeat. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1989 Aug;86(15):5974–5978. doi: 10.1073/pnas.86.15.5974. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Fan C. M., Maniatis T. Generation of p50 subunit of NF-kappa B by processing of p105 through an ATP-dependent pathway. Nature. 1991 Dec 5;354(6352):395–398. doi: 10.1038/354395a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Feuillard J., Gouy H., Bismuth G., Lee L. M., Debré P., Körner M. NF-kappa B activation by tumor necrosis factor alpha in the Jurkat T cell line is independent of protein kinase A, protein kinase C, and Ca(2+)-regulated kinases. Cytokine. 1991 May;3(3):257–265. doi: 10.1016/1043-4666(91)90025-9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Franzoso G., Bours V., Park S., Tomita-Yamaguchi M., Kelly K., Siebenlist U. The candidate oncoprotein Bcl-3 is an antagonist of p50/NF-kappa B-mediated inhibition. Nature. 1992 Sep 24;359(6393):339–342. doi: 10.1038/359339a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Ghosh S., Baltimore D. Activation in vitro of NF-kappa B by phosphorylation of its inhibitor I kappa B. Nature. 1990 Apr 12;344(6267):678–682. doi: 10.1038/344678a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Ghosh S., Gifford A. M., Riviere L. R., Tempst P., Nolan G. P., Baltimore D. Cloning of the p50 DNA binding subunit of NF-kappa B: homology to rel and dorsal. Cell. 1990 Sep 7;62(5):1019–1029. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(90)90276-k. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Grilli M., Chiu J. J., Lenardo M. J. NF-kappa B and Rel: participants in a multiform transcriptional regulatory system. Int Rev Cytol. 1993;143:1–62. doi: 10.1016/s0074-7696(08)61873-2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Haskill S., Beg A. A., Tompkins S. M., Morris J. S., Yurochko A. D., Sampson-Johannes A., Mondal K., Ralph P., Baldwin A. S., Jr Characterization of an immediate-early gene induced in adherent monocytes that encodes I kappa B-like activity. Cell. 1991 Jun 28;65(7):1281–1289. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(91)90022-q. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Hatada E. N., Nieters A., Wulczyn F. G., Naumann M., Meyer R., Nucifora G., McKeithan T. W., Scheidereit C. The ankyrin repeat domains of the NF-kappa B precursor p105 and the protooncogene bcl-3 act as specific inhibitors of NF-kappa B DNA binding. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1992 Mar 15;89(6):2489–2493. doi: 10.1073/pnas.89.6.2489. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. Henkel T., Zabel U., van Zee K., Müller J. M., Fanning E., Baeuerle P. A. Intramolecular masking of the nuclear location signal and dimerization domain in the precursor for the p50 NF-kappa B subunit. Cell. 1992 Mar 20;68(6):1121–1133. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(92)90083-o. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  25. Hohmann H. P., Remy R., Scheidereit C., van Loon A. P. Maintenance of NF-kappa B activity is dependent on protein synthesis and the continuous presence of external stimuli. Mol Cell Biol. 1991 Jan;11(1):259–266. doi: 10.1128/mcb.11.1.259. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  26. Inoue J., Kerr L. D., Kakizuka A., Verma I. M. I kappa B gamma, a 70 kd protein identical to the C-terminal half of p110 NF-kappa B: a new member of the I kappa B family. Cell. 1992 Mar 20;68(6):1109–1120. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(92)90082-n. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  27. Inoue J., Kerr L. D., Rashid D., Davis N., Bose H. R., Jr, Verma I. M. Direct association of pp40/I kappa B beta with rel/NF-kappa B transcription factors: role of ankyrin repeats in the inhibition of DNA binding activity. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1992 May 15;89(10):4333–4337. doi: 10.1073/pnas.89.10.4333. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  28. Israël A., Le Bail O., Hatat D., Piette J., Kieran M., Logeat F., Wallach D., Fellous M., Kourilsky P. TNF stimulates expression of mouse MHC class I genes by inducing an NF kappa B-like enhancer binding activity which displaces constitutive factors. EMBO J. 1989 Dec 1;8(12):3793–3800. doi: 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1989.tb08556.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  29. Kerr L. D., Inoue J., Davis N., Link E., Baeuerle P. A., Bose H. R., Jr, Verma I. M. The rel-associated pp40 protein prevents DNA binding of Rel and NF-kappa B: relationship with I kappa B beta and regulation by phosphorylation. Genes Dev. 1991 Aug;5(8):1464–1476. doi: 10.1101/gad.5.8.1464. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  30. Kieran M., Blank V., Logeat F., Vandekerckhove J., Lottspeich F., Le Bail O., Urban M. B., Kourilsky P., Baeuerle P. A., Israël A. The DNA binding subunit of NF-kappa B is identical to factor KBF1 and homologous to the rel oncogene product. Cell. 1990 Sep 7;62(5):1007–1018. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(90)90275-j. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  31. Kunsch C., Ruben S. M., Rosen C. A. Selection of optimal kappa B/Rel DNA-binding motifs: interaction of both subunits of NF-kappa B with DNA is required for transcriptional activation. Mol Cell Biol. 1992 Oct;12(10):4412–4421. doi: 10.1128/mcb.12.10.4412. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  32. Lowenthal J. W., Ballard D. W., Böhnlein E., Greene W. C. Tumor necrosis factor alpha induces proteins that bind specifically to kappa B-like enhancer elements and regulate interleukin 2 receptor alpha-chain gene expression in primary human T lymphocytes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1989 Apr;86(7):2331–2335. doi: 10.1073/pnas.86.7.2331. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  33. Mathias S., Dressler K. A., Kolesnick R. N. Characterization of a ceramide-activated protein kinase: stimulation by tumor necrosis factor alpha. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1991 Nov 15;88(22):10009–10013. doi: 10.1073/pnas.88.22.10009. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  34. Nolan G. P., Baltimore D. The inhibitory ankyrin and activator Rel proteins. Curr Opin Genet Dev. 1992 Apr;2(2):211–220. doi: 10.1016/s0959-437x(05)80276-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  35. Nolan G. P., Ghosh S., Liou H. C., Tempst P., Baltimore D. DNA binding and I kappa B inhibition of the cloned p65 subunit of NF-kappa B, a rel-related polypeptide. Cell. 1991 Mar 8;64(5):961–969. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(91)90320-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  36. Osborn L., Kunkel S., Nabel G. J. Tumor necrosis factor alpha and interleukin 1 stimulate the human immunodeficiency virus enhancer by activation of the nuclear factor kappa B. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1989 Apr;86(7):2336–2340. doi: 10.1073/pnas.86.7.2336. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  37. Rice N. R., MacKichan M. L., Israël A. The precursor of NF-kappa B p50 has I kappa B-like functions. Cell. 1992 Oct 16;71(2):243–253. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(92)90353-e. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  38. Ruben S. M., Dillon P. J., Schreck R., Henkel T., Chen C. H., Maher M., Baeuerle P. A., Rosen C. A. Isolation of a rel-related human cDNA that potentially encodes the 65-kD subunit of NF-kappa B. Science. 1991 Mar 22;251(5000):1490–1493. doi: 10.1126/science.2006423. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  39. Ruben S. M., Narayanan R., Klement J. F., Chen C. H., Rosen C. A. Functional characterization of the NF-kappa B p65 transcriptional activator and an alternatively spliced derivative. Mol Cell Biol. 1992 Feb;12(2):444–454. doi: 10.1128/mcb.12.2.444. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  40. Schreck R., Meier B., Männel D. N., Dröge W., Baeuerle P. A. Dithiocarbamates as potent inhibitors of nuclear factor kappa B activation in intact cells. J Exp Med. 1992 May 1;175(5):1181–1194. doi: 10.1084/jem.175.5.1181. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  41. Schreck R., Rieber P., Baeuerle P. A. Reactive oxygen intermediates as apparently widely used messengers in the activation of the NF-kappa B transcription factor and HIV-1. EMBO J. 1991 Aug;10(8):2247–2258. doi: 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1991.tb07761.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  42. Schütze S., Potthoff K., Machleidt T., Berkovic D., Wiegmann K., Krönke M. TNF activates NF-kappa B by phosphatidylcholine-specific phospholipase C-induced "acidic" sphingomyelin breakdown. Cell. 1992 Nov 27;71(5):765–776. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(92)90553-o. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  43. Shirakawa F., Mizel S. B. In vitro activation and nuclear translocation of NF-kappa B catalyzed by cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase and protein kinase C. Mol Cell Biol. 1989 Jun;9(6):2424–2430. doi: 10.1128/mcb.9.6.2424. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  44. Staal F. J., Roederer M., Herzenberg L. A., Herzenberg L. A. Intracellular thiols regulate activation of nuclear factor kappa B and transcription of human immunodeficiency virus. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1990 Dec;87(24):9943–9947. doi: 10.1073/pnas.87.24.9943. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  45. Stein B., Rahmsdorf H. J., Steffen A., Litfin M., Herrlich P. UV-induced DNA damage is an intermediate step in UV-induced expression of human immunodeficiency virus type 1, collagenase, c-fos, and metallothionein. Mol Cell Biol. 1989 Nov;9(11):5169–5181. doi: 10.1128/mcb.9.11.5169. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  46. Storms R. W., Bose H. R., Jr Alterations within pp59v-rel-containing protein complexes following the stimulation of REV-T-transformed lymphoid cells with zinc. Virology. 1992 Jun;188(2):765–777. doi: 10.1016/0042-6822(92)90531-s. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  47. Sun S. C., Ganchi P. A., Ballard D. W., Greene W. C. NF-kappa B controls expression of inhibitor I kappa B alpha: evidence for an inducible autoregulatory pathway. Science. 1993 Mar 26;259(5103):1912–1915. doi: 10.1126/science.8096091. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  48. Tan T. H., Huang G. P., Sica A., Ghosh P., Young H. A., Longo D. L., Rice N. R. Kappa B site-dependent activation of the interleukin-2 receptor alpha-chain gene promoter by human c-Rel. Mol Cell Biol. 1992 Sep;12(9):4067–4075. doi: 10.1128/mcb.12.9.4067. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  49. Ten R. M., Paya C. V., Israël N., Le Bail O., Mattei M. G., Virelizier J. L., Kourilsky P., Israël A. The characterization of the promoter of the gene encoding the p50 subunit of NF-kappa B indicates that it participates in its own regulation. EMBO J. 1992 Jan;11(1):195–203. doi: 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1992.tb05042.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  50. Vassalli P. The pathophysiology of tumor necrosis factors. Annu Rev Immunol. 1992;10:411–452. doi: 10.1146/annurev.iy.10.040192.002211. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  51. Wulczyn F. G., Naumann M., Scheidereit C. Candidate proto-oncogene bcl-3 encodes a subunit-specific inhibitor of transcription factor NF-kappa B. Nature. 1992 Aug 13;358(6387):597–599. doi: 10.1038/358597a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Molecular and Cellular Biology are provided here courtesy of Taylor & Francis

RESOURCES

  NODES
Association 1
twitter 2