No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

The PI3K family is central to numerous cellular processes in both health and disease. The class IA isoforms of PI3K control such outputs as proliferation, metabolism and survival through their well-characterised function as lipid kinases, with their signalling thought to predominantly mediated by the Akt/PKB protein kinase. However there exist other signalling routes, including from the lipid kinase activity through other effectors, but also through a protein kinase function of the class IA isoforms themselves. Mass spectrometry is a powerful tool which has been central to the recent advances in phosphoproteomic techniques. It is now possible to use mass-spectrometry to probe the phosphoproteome of any number of systems in an unbiased and global manner. In this project, we aimed to advance our understanding of two aspects of class IA PI3K signalling which are relatively poorly understood. We used phosphoproteomic techniques which allowed us to provide answers to some old questions which have up to now proved elusive. First, we investigated the protein kinase activity of p110α. We used an in vitro protein kinase assay and coupled this to mass spectrometry techniques to identify direct substrates of p110α. We proposed two novel protein substrates and attempted to characterise them further, although we were hampered by lack of available biochemical tools. Second, we investigated the differential phosphoproteomes of the ubiquitously expressed class IA PI3K isoforms p110α and p110β in a panel of breast cancer cell lines. We used mass spectrometry-based phosphoproteomics and found significant differences in signalling between p110α and p110β in 4T1 cells, including differential regulation of previously described PI3K effectors, amongst them the Akt substrate PRAS40, and potential novel targets. Additionally, we found that some of these effects were conserved between cell lines.

The PTPN22 gene encoding the Lyp/Pep protein tyrosine phosphatase has recently been described as a negative regulator of T-cell receptor signalling. Little biological information is available on this protein, but a variant allele in this gene conferring a R620W change has been associated with rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune disease states. To gain further understanding into the roles of Lyp, this work is aimed at identifying and characterizing Lyp interactions, and elucidating the effect of the variant Lyp in immunological disease. Specifically, the interaction of Lyp with the ubiquitin ligase Cbl was further examined and characterized to uncover its role in T-cells. Furthermore, the biochemical and functional differences of the variant Lyp were examined by utilizing a murine model of the variant, Pep R619W. This work led to novel findings on the stability of the protein and its resulting dysfunction, leading to cell hyperresponsiveness. Finally, a new role for Lyp in controlling cell migration was uncovered through its interaction with GRK2. The inhibitory properties of Lyp on cell migration are disrupted in the presence of the Lyp R620W variant, leading to dysregulation of GRK2 function and altered migratory properties of cells, particularly in the collagen-antibody induced arthritis model. Understanding the normal function of Lyp, as well as dysfunction of the variant, will provide new insights into normal T-cell signalling and aid in the understanding of the processes of autoimmunity.

The PTPN22 gene encoding the Lyp/Pep protein tyrosine phosphatase has recently been described as a negative regulator of T-cell receptor signalling. Little biological information is available on this protein, but a variant allele in this gene conferring a R620W change has been associated with rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune disease states. To gain further understanding into the roles of Lyp, this work is aimed at identifying and characterizing Lyp interactions, and elucidating the effect of the variant Lyp in immunological disease. Specifically, the interaction of Lyp with the ubiquitin ligase Cbl was further examined and characterized to uncover its role in T-cells. Furthermore, the biochemical and functional differences of the variant Lyp were examined by utilizing a murine model of the variant, Pep R619W. This work led to novel findings on the stability of the protein and its resulting dysfunction, leading to cell hyperresponsiveness. Finally, a new role for Lyp in controlling cell migration was uncovered through its interaction with GRK2. The inhibitory properties of Lyp on cell migration are disrupted in the presence of the Lyp R620W variant, leading to dysregulation of GRK2 function and altered migratory properties of cells, particularly in the collagen-antibody induced arthritis model. Understanding the normal function of Lyp, as well as dysfunction of the variant, will provide new insights into normal T-cell signalling and aid in the understanding of the processes of autoimmunity.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.