Comprehensive analyses for biological functions and regulatory mechanisms of DOCK family proteins

2015 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 25251015
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (A)
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Functional biochemistry
• Research Institution: Kyushu University
• Principal Investigator: Fukui Yoshinori 九州大学, 生体防御医学研究所, 教授 (60243961)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): URUNO Takehito 九州大学, 生体防御医学研究所, 准教授 (80532093)
• Project Period (FY): 2013-05-31 – 2016-03-31
• Keywords: シグナル伝達 / 生体分子 / 癌 / 免疫学

Outline of Final Research Achievements

DOCK family proteins are atypical guanine nucleotide exchange factors that mediate GTP-GDP exchange reaction through their DHR-2 domain. Recent evidence indicates that DOCK family proteins are involved in many cellular functions, yet their regulatory mechanisms are poorly understood. In this study, we have analyzed signaling and functions of DOCK family proteins and obtained the following important findings: 1) DOCK5 acts downstream of FCεRI receptor and critically regulates mast cell degranulation. 2) DOCK1 plays a key role in invasion and metastasis of breast cancer cells. 3) The phosphorylation sites of DOCK2 in response to chemokine stimulation were identified. 4) The critical domain required for membrane localization of DOCK8 was identified. 5) The previously unknown function of DOCK8 and its regulatory mechanism were discovered.

Free Research Field

機能生物化学