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SWAP-70 is a guanine-nucleotide-exchange factor that mediates signalling of membrane ruffling

  • Masahiro Shinohara
  • , Yoh Terada
  • , Akihiro Iwamatsu
  • , Azusa Shinohara
  • , Naoki Mochizuki
  • , Maiko Higuchi
  • , Yukiko Gotoh
  • , Sayoko Ihara
  • , Satoshi Nagata
  • , Hiroshi Itoh
  • , Yasuhlsa Fukui
  • , Rolf Jessberger

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

193 Scopus citations

Abstract

Phosphoinositide-3-OH kinase (PI(3)K), activated through growth factor stimulation, generates a lipid second messenger, phosphatidylinositol-3, 4, 5-trisphosphate (PtdIns(3, 4, 5)P3). PtdIns(3, 4, 5)P3 is instrumental in signalling pathways that trigger cell activation, cytoskeletal rearrangement, survival and other reactions. However, some targets of PtdIns(3, 4, 5)P3 are yet to be discovered. We demonstrate that SWAP-70, a unique signalling protein, specifically binds PtdIns(3, 4, 5)P. On stimulation by growth factors, cytoplasmic SWAP-70, which is dependent on PI(3)K but independent of Ras, moved to cell membrane rearrangements known as ruffles. However, mutant SWAP-70 lacking the ability to bind PtdIns(3, 4, 5)P3 blocked membrane ruffling induced by epidermal growth factor or platelet-derived growth factor. SWAP-70 shows low homology with Rac-guanine nucleotide exchange factors (GEFs), and catalyses PtdIns(3, 4, 5)P3-dependent guanine nucleotide exchange to Rac. SWAP-70-deficient fibroblasts showed impaired membrane ruffling after stimulation with epidermal growth factor, and failed to activate Rac fully. We conclude that SWAP-70 is a new type of Rac-GEF which, independently of Ras, transduces signals from tyrosine kinase receptors to Rac.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)759-763
Number of pages5
JournalNature
Volume416
Issue number6882
DOIs
StatePublished - 2002

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