These tools will no longer be maintained as of December 31, 2024. Archived website can be found here. PubMed4Hh GitHub repository can be found here. Contact NLM Customer Service if you have questions.
Pubmed for Handhelds
PUBMED FOR HANDHELDS
Search MEDLINE/PubMed
Title: Inhibition of Xenopus oocyte meiotic maturation by catalytically inactive protein kinase A. Author: Schmitt A, Nebreda AR. Journal: Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A; 2002 Apr 02; 99(7):4361-6. PubMed ID: 11904361. Abstract: Progesterone induces G2-arrested Xenopus oocytes to develop into fertilizable eggs in a process called meiotic maturation. Protein kinase A (PKA), the cAMP-dependent protein kinase, has long been known to be a potent inhibitor of meiotic maturation, but little information is available on how PKA functions. We have cloned two Xenopus PKA catalytic subunit isoforms, XPKAalpha and XPKAbeta. These proteins are 89% identical and both inhibit progesterone-induced meiotic maturation when overexpressed at low levels, suggesting that PKA activity is tightly regulated in the oocyte. Unexpectedly, catalytically inactive XPKA mutants are able to block progesterone-induced maturation as efficiently as the wild-type active XPKA. These mutants also block meiotic maturation induced by Mos, but are less efficient at inhibiting Cdc25C-induced maturation. Our results indicate that PKA can inhibit meiotic maturation by a novel mechanism, which does not require its kinase activity and is also independent of binding to the PKA regulatory subunits.[Abstract] [Full Text] [Related] [New Search]