PTPRA Polyclonal Antibody, Invitrogen™

Description

• Phosphorylation of receptors by protein kinases is a process that can be reversed by a group of enzymes called protein phosphatases
• Coordinated control of kinases and phosphatases provides the cell with the capacity to rapidly switch between phosphorylated and dephosphorylated protein states in dynamic response to environmental stimuli
• Activation of critical enzymes by kinase phosphorylation alone is not enough to provide adequate regulation - it is the combination with phosphatase dephosphorylation that effectively creates on/off switches to control cellular events
• Errors in control, either through kinases or their counterpart phosphatases, can lead to unchecked cell growth attributable to human cancers and developmental disorders
• Potential mechanisms to control dephosphorylation include changes in the expression of protein phosphatases, their subcellular localization, phosphorylation of phosphatase catalytic and regulatory subunits and regulation by endogenous phosphatase inhibitors
• Most protein phosphatases are not stringently specific for their substrates
• Consequently, changes in phosphatase activity may have a broad impact on dephosphorylation and turnover of phosphoproteins that are substrates for different kinases
• This may be an important point of control to connect cellular circuitry of interrelated signaling pathways, and to synchronize physiological responses.