Generic placeholder image

Anti-Cancer Agents in Medicinal Chemistry

Editor-in-Chief

ISSN (Print): 1871-5206
ISSN (Online): 1875-5992

Dual-Specificity MAP Kinase Phosphatases as Targets of Cancer Treatment

Author(s): Caroline Nunes-Xavier, Carlos Roma-Mateo, Pablo Rios, Celine Tarrega, Rocio Cejudo-Marin, Lydia Tabernero and Rafael Pulido

Volume 11, Issue 1, 2011

Page: [109 - 132] Pages: 24

DOI: 10.2174/187152011794941190

Price: $65

Abstract

The protein tyrosine phosphatase family (PTP) contains a group of dual-specificity phosphatases (DUSPs) that regulate the activivity of MAP kinases (MAPKs), which are key effectors in the control of cell growth and survival in physiological and pathological processes, including cancer. These phosphatases, named as MKP-DUSPs, include the MAPK phosphatases (MKPs) as well as a group of small-size atypical DUSPs structurally and functionally related to the MKPs. MKP-DUSPs, in most of the cases, are direct inactivators of MAPKs by dephosphorylation of both the Thr and the Tyr regulatory residues at the MAPKs catalytic loop. In some other cases, MKPDUSPs regulate the activity of MAPKs indirectly, acting through upstream MAPK pathways components. The active involvement of MKP-DUSPs in oncogenesis or resistance to cancer therapies is now well documented, making the search and validation of MKP-DUSPs inhibitors a prominent area in clinical cancer research. Here, we review the current knowledge on the role of MKP-DUSPs in human cancer, the status of the preclinical development and validation of specific MKP-DUSP inhibitors, and the potential of MKP-DUSPs as targets for anti-cancer drugs.

Keywords: Protein tyrosine phosphatases (PTPs), dual-specificity phosphatases (DUSPs), MAP kinase phosphatases (MKPs), inhibitors, anti-cancer agents, JNK1, VRK3, ERK1/2, dual specificity, LNCaP, PMA


Rights & Permissions Print Cite
© 2024 Bentham Science Publishers | Privacy Policy