Site-specificcaseinkinase1e-dependent phosphorylation
of Dishevelledmodulatesb-catenin signaling
Laura K. Klimowski
1,
*, Benjamin A. Garcia
2,†
, Jeffrey Shabanowitz
2
, Donald F. Hunt
2,3
and David M. Virshup
4
1 Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
2 Department of Chemistry, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA
3 Department of Pathology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA
4 Departments of Pediatrics and the Center for Children, Huntsman Cancer Institute, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
Wnt signaling is required for normal development and
proliferation, and its correct regulation is critical to pre-
vent cancer. Mutations in genes encoding proteins regu-
lating the Wnt cascade, such as adenomatous polyposis
coli (APC), b-catenin and axin, are common in dysregu-
lated development and multiple cancers [1,2]. These
mutations are thought to function in part by impeding
the basal degradation of b-catenin, which is crucial for
correct cell regulation. The Dishevelled protein (Dvl)
plays a central role in Wnt-regulated signaling path-
ways [3,4]. One function is to inhibit the degradation
of b-catenin through inhibition of glycogen synthase
kinase 3 activity. Dvl is also downstream of Wnt in
pathways regulating cell migration and activation of
Ca
2+
-dependent signaling [5,6]. The mechanism by
which Dvl transduces signals to these diverse effector
pathways has been the object of intense study. Wnt
signaling generates hyperphosphorylated forms of Dvl
that sometimes but not always correlate with increased
b-catenin in the nucleus and Lef-1-induced transcription
Keywords
b-catenin; caseinkinase 1; Dishevelled;
phosphopeptides; Wnt
Correspondence
D. M. Virshup, Huntsman Cancer Institute,
University of Utah, Salt Lake City,
UT 84103, USA
Fax: +1 1 587 9415
Tel: +1 1 801585 3408
E-mail: david.virshup@hci.utah.edu
Present address
*University of Virginia, Department of Emer-
gency Medicine, Charlottesville, VA, USA
†
Institute for Genomic Biology, University
of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, Urbana, IL,
USA
(Received 29 June 2006, revised 10 August
2006, accepted 11 August 2006)
doi:10.1111/j.1742-4658.2006.05462.x
Careful regulation of the Wnt–B-catenin signaling pathway is critical to
many aspects of development and cancer. Caseinkinase Ie is a Wnt-activa-
ted positive regulator of this pathway. Members of the Dishevelled family
have been identified as key substrates ofcaseinkinase I (CKI). However,
the specific sites phosphorylated in vivo by CKI and their relative import-
ance in the physiologic regulation of these proteins in the canonical Wnt–
b-catenin signaling pathway remain unclear. To address this question,
recombinant mouse Dishevelled (mDvl-1) was phosphorylated by CKI
in vitro and phosphorylation sites were identified by MS. CKI phosphoryla-
tion of mDvl-1 at two highly conserved residues, serines 139 and 142, was
observed by MS and confirmed by phosphopeptide mapping of in vivo
phosphorylated protein. Phosphorylationof these sites is dependent on
casein kinase I epsilon activity in vivo. Phenotypic analysis of mutant
mDvl-1 indicates that phosphorylationof these sites stimulates the Dvl-
activated b-catenin-dependent Wnt signaling pathway in both cell culture
and in Xenopus development. Caseinkinase I epsilon is a Wnt-regulated
kinase, and regulated phosphorylationof Dvl allows fine tuning of the
Wnt–b-catenin signaling pathway.
Abbreviations
CAD, collisionally activated dissociation; CKIe, caseinkinase I epsilon; Dvl, Dishevelled; IMAC, immobilized metal affinity chromatography;
LC-MS ⁄ MS, HPLC ESI and tandem MS; MBP, maltose binding protein; MT, myc-tagged; mDvl-1, mouse Dishevelled 1; XDsh, Xenopus
Dishevelled.
4594 FEBS Journal 273 (2006) 4594–4602 ª 2006 The Authors Journal compilation ª 2006 FEBS
[7,8]. Dvl phosphorylation may therefore be a critical
step in signal transduction [4,9–11]. However, there are
limited data on specific sites on Dvl that are phosphor-
ylated in vivo.
Casein kinase I epsilon (CKIe) is a positive regulator
of the Wnt signaling pathway downstream of Wnt
and upstream of Dvl, axin and b-catenin. CKIe and
Dvl physically interact in vivo, and CKIe phosphory-
lates Dvl in response to Wnt signaling [9–12]. Low-level
expression of CKIe and Dvl synergize to both stabilize
b-catenin and induce ectopic secondary axis formation
during Xenopus embryogenesis [11,13]. Inhibition or
RNA interference-induced knockdown of CKIe (or its
Drosophila ortholog Dbt) blocks the effect of Wnt over-
expression on signaling in mammalian and S2 cells in
culture and on Xenopus axis formation during early
development [9,10,13]. CKIe activity is rapidly upregu-
lated in response to Wnt ligand, and constitutively act-
ive CKIe is a more potent activator of transcription
from a b-catenin-responsive promoter [14]. These data
strongly suggest that CKIe is a positive regulator of the
Wnt–b-catenin signaling pathway and Dvl is an import-
ant CKIe substrate. Here, we identify specific sites that
are phosphorylated on Dvl-1 by CKIe. HPLC ESI and
tandem MS (LC-MS ⁄ MS) and immobilized metal affin-
ity chromatography (IMAC LC-MS ⁄ MS) analysis of
in vitro phosphorylated protein identified multiple phos-
phorylation sites. In vivo phosphopeptide mapping
combined with the use of a CKIe inhibitor confirmed
that a subset of sites, serines 139 and 142 of Dvl-1, were
also phosphorylated in vivo by CKIe. Mutation of these
highly conserved sites resulted in a significant decrease
in the activity of Dvl-1 in both cell culture and Xenopus
axis duplication assays. The results provide molecular
insights into the mechanism by which Wnt signaling to
CKIe regulates the b-cateninsignaling pathway.
Results and Discussion
CKIe phosphorylates mouse Dvl-1 (mDvl-1)
in vitro and in vivo
CKIe-specific phosphorylation sites on mDvl-1 were
first identified using in vitro phosphorylation and
LC-MS ⁄ MS analyses. Stoichiometric analysis using
constitutively active CKIeD319 phosphorylation of
recombinant maltose binding protein (MBP)–mDvl-1
in vitro [4 pmol of MBP–mDvl-1, 200 lm ATP, 5 mm
dithiothreitol, 10 mm MgCl
2
, 100 nm His
6
-CKIeD319,
incubated at 37 °C for 5–30 min] demonstrated that at
least three phosphates are incorporated per mole of
MBP–mDvl-1 (data not shown). To identify these CKI
phosphorylation sites, full-length MBP–mDvl-1 was
phosphorylated in vitro, separated by SDS ⁄ PAGE,
trypsin digested and gel extracted. Initial LC-MS ⁄ MS
analysis yielded approximately 75% coverage of
mDvl-1, with identification of four phosphorylated pep-
tides. Phosphorylated protease-digested peptides were
isolated by Fe
+3
IMAC and analyzed by LC-MS ⁄ MS
to enrich for extremely low-level phosphopeptides.
IMAC LC-MS ⁄ MS yielded two additional phospho-
peptides (SDMpSAIVR and YASpSMLK). The stoi-
chiometry ofphosphorylation varied for the six
IMAC-isolated peptide fragments (Table 1). These val-
ues were derived from the relative percentage phos-
phorylation determined for each peptide analyzed by
LC-MS ⁄ MS, as phosphopeptide and nonphosphor-
ylated forms generally do not have exactly the same
ionization efficiencies. To determine the relative per-
centage phosphorylation, the areas under the curve
(total mass spectrum ion current signal) for all charge
states of a given phosphopeptide during an LC-
MS ⁄ MS experiment were added together and divided
by the sum of the areas under the curve for all charge
states of the nonphosphorylated and phosphorylated
forms of that peptide [15]. Each of the identified phos-
phorylation sites was further analyzed for biological
relevance (see below), leading us to focus on a single
peptide. This peptide, producing a 998.37 m ⁄ z precur-
sor ion, was identified as corresponding to a doubly
phosphorylated tryptic fragment, DGMDNETG-
TES*MVS*HR(129–144). The singly phosphorylated
y4 and y5 and doubly phosphorylated y6 and y9
daughter ions revealed serines 139 and 142 (S139 ⁄ 142)
as putative CKI phosphorylation sites (Fig. 1A).
The Dvl family is encoded by three distinct genes in
vertebrates, designated Dvl-1, Dvl-2 and Dvl-3. Amino
acid sequence alignment of these peptide fragments
indicated that serines 119, 139, 142, 384, 385, 416 and
473 were highly conserved between Dvl isoforms
(Dvl-1, Dvl-2 and Dvl-3) and species (mouse, human and
Xenopus). The phosphopeptide serine residues 632 and
635 were conserved between species, but only within
the Dvl-1 isoform. CKI preferentially phosphorylates
serine or threonine residues preceded by acidic or
phosphorylated residues. The only in vitro phosphoryl-
ated peptide containing highly conserved potential
phosphorylation sites that are preceded by multiple
acidic residues is DGMDNETGTES*MVS*HR(129–
144), where serines 139 and 142 are phosphorylated
(Fig. 1B). Phosphorylationof serine 139 may be pro-
moted by the presence of upstream highly conserved
acidic residues. Phosphoserine 139 could then create a
recognition site for phosphorylationof serine 142 in
the motif pSXXS [16–18]. This conservation of CKI
phosphorylation sites across species supports the
L. K. Klimowski et al. Regulation of Dvl-1 by CKIe
FEBS Journal 273 (2006) 4594–4602 ª 2006 The Authors Journal compilation ª 2006 FEBS 4595
possibility that mDvl-1 serines 139 and 142 may be
important regulatory sites for Dvl-dependent Wnt sig-
nal transduction.
In vitro phosphorylationof purified proteins can be
a useful method to determine phosphorylation sites,
but their biological relevance must be validated in vivo.
To determine how many sites on Dvl-1 were in fact
phosphorylated in vivo by CKIe, we compared in vivo
phosphopeptide maps of Dvl-1 from cells metabolically
labeled in the presence or absence of the CKId ⁄ e
inhibitor IC-261 [19]. Multiple phosphopeptides were
generated by tryptic digest of the in vivo phosphorylat-
ed mDvl-1, indicating multiple phosphorylation sites.
Four of these sites appear to be CKId ⁄ e sites, as four
major phosphopeptides (designated a–d in Fig. 2A,B)
disappeared after CKId ⁄ e inhibition. We then system-
atically compared phosphopeptide maps of
32
P-labeled
mDvl-1 wild-type and the corresponding mutants,
mDvl-1 S119A, S139 ⁄ 142A, S384 ⁄ 385A, S416A and
S473A immunoprecipitated from metabolically labeled
HEK293 cells. Peptides labeled a and b are present
in maps from wild-type, but not mutant, mDvl-1
S139 ⁄ 142A, indicating that these sites are phosphoryl-
ated in vivo. Several reasons may account for the pres-
ence of two related phosphopeptides a and b. First,
the trypsin-digested fragment, DGMDNETGTES-
MVSHR(129–144), may exist in vivo as both mono-
phosphorylated and diphosphorylated peptides.
Second, trypsin cleavage is efficient, but after the ini-
tial cleavage at the alternative site (between the two
basic residues), no further cleavage occurs by the endo-
protease [20]. Partial digestion between the C-terminal
di-arginine, DGMDNETGTESMVSHR
Ú
R(129–145),
may therefore result in two peptides differing only by
one arginine residue. Methionine oxidation (+16 Da)
was observed on both methionine residues on this pep-
tide. This oxidation is a regular consequence of the
in-gel digestion procedures, as formic acid (used in the
in-gel peptide extraction protocol) is a strong acid and
oxidizes Met residues. Nevertheless, both the missed
cleavage and oxidized peptides containing residues
129–145 are minor species compared to the phospho-
tryptic peptide shown in Fig. 1A. The IC-261-depend-
ent loss of peptides c and d suggests that additional
CKIe sites are present in vivo, as has been suggested
by previous studies [9]. Unfortunately, peptides c and
d did not correlate with the peptides listed in Table 1.
Although extensive efforts were made to isolate sites
a–d using LC-MS ⁄ MS and IMAC LC-MS ⁄ MS analy-
ses of in vivo phosphorylated Dvl-1, recovery of these
phosphopeptides was not achieved.
Phosphoserines 139 and 142 are positive
regulators of Dvl-dependent Wnt signal
transduction
We next assessed the functional importance of the phos-
phoserine 139 and 142 sites on Dvl. Overexpression of
Dvl-1 in HEK293 cells activates b-catenin-dependent
signal transduction. If these CKIe-phosphorylation
sites are important for Wnt signal transduction, we
hypothesized that mutating serines 139 and 142 to ala-
nines would diminish the intensity ofsignaling in
HEK293 cells. b-Catenin ⁄ Lef-1-dependent transcription
was assessed using the luciferase reporter plasmid
pTOPFLASH. These experiments were performed three
Table 1. Identification of in vitro caseinkinase I (CKI) phosphorylation sites on Dishevelled 1 (Dvl-1). Phosphorylated serine residues are
followed by an asterisk. Percentage peptide phosphorylated in vitro represents the sum of the area under the curve (total mass spectrum
ion current signal) for all charge states of a given phosphopeptide during a normal LC-MS ⁄ MS experiment were divided by the sum of the
area under the curve for all charge states of the nonphosphorylated and phosphorylated forms of that peptide. This should only be consid-
ered a relative approximation of percentage phosphorylation, as phosphopeptides and nonphosphorylated forms generally do not have the
exact same ionization efficiencies. Change in Dvl biological activity: mutants were tested for their ability to alter axis specification in Xenopus
laevis (XL) and transactivation of a b-catenin-responsive promoter in HEK293 cells (293) as described in Materials and methods. Conserved
species homology: indicates if the sites are conserved between human (H), mouse (M) and Xenopus (X). mDv1-1, mouse Dishevelled 1;
Dvl, Dishevelled; IMAC, immobilized metal affinity chromatography. ND, not detected.
mDvl-1 tryptic phosphopeptides
phosphorylated by CKIe in vitro
Residues
phosphorylated
Percentage of peptide
phosphorylated
in vitro
Change in in vivo
phosphopeptide
map
Change in Dvl
biological activity
Conserved
species
homology
TGGIGDSRPPS*FHPNVASSR
DGMDNETGTES*MVS*HR
YGTSPC(SS)*AITR
SDMS*AIVR
YASS*MLK
S119
S139, S142
S384, S385
S416
S473
49
19
27
IMAC
IMAC
ND
Yes; see Fig. 2
ND
ND
ND
ND (XL, 293)
Yes (XL, 293)
ND (XL, 293)
ND (293)
Not tested
M, H, X
M, H, X
M, H, X
M, H, X
M, H, X
S*QAS*AVAPGLPPLHPLTK S632, S635 10 Not tested ND (293) M, H, X
Only Dvl-1
Regulation of Dvl-1 by CKIe L. K. Klimowski et al.
4596 FEBS Journal 273 (2006) 4594–4602 ª 2006 The Authors Journal compilation ª 2006 FEBS
separate times with three replicates in each experiment
(n ¼ 3). b-Catenin ⁄ Lef-1-dependent transcription acti-
vation was reproducibly two-fold greater with expres-
sion of mDvl-1 wild-type compared to mDvl-1
S139 ⁄ 142A (Fig. 3A). The diminished transactivation
by the S139 ⁄ 142A mutant was not due to decreased
mDvl-1 protein expression, because immunoblot analy-
sis indicated that protein expression levels were equal if
not greater in the mutant than in the wild-type at all
concentrations tested (Fig. 3B).
Dvl-1 undergoes a phosphorylation-dependent elec-
trophoretic mobility shift in response to both Wnt
signaling and CKIe expression [9,10,12]. Mutation of
mDvl-1 serines 139 and 142 to alanine significantly
altered the CKIe-dependent electrophoretic mobility
shift, blocking the appearance of the slowest-migra-
ting species. These data are consistent with the con-
clusion that serines 139 and 142 are phosphorylated
in vivo by CKIe. The incomplete abrogation of the
CKIe-induced electrophoretic mobility shift (Fig. 3C,
compare lanes 3 and 4) is also consistent with the
phosphopeptide mapping data (Fig. 2A,C), which sug-
gests that CKIe phosphorylates additional sites on
Dvl-1.
mDvl-1 serines 139 and 142 modulate secondary
axis formation
Previous studies have shown that CKIe synergizes with
Xenopus Dishevelled (XDsh) in the development of the
secondary axis phenotype in Xenopus. As mutation of
the CKIe phosphorylation sites at mDvl-1 serines 139
Fig. 1. Identification of mouse Dishevelled 1
(mDvl-1) serines 139 and 142 as in vitro
casein kinase I (CKI) phosphorylation sites.
(A) IMAC LC-MS ⁄ MS spectrum of the phos-
pho-mDvl-1 precursor ion demonstrates
phosphorylation on mDvl-1 serines 139 and
142. IMAC LC-MS ⁄ MS identified a promin-
ent species at m ⁄ z 998.37 (doubly charged
1995 m ⁄ 2z) corresponding to the indica-
ted tryptic phosphopeptide. Internal and
C-terminal carboxylates were converted to
methyl esters prior to analysis. Subsequent
fragmentation revealed multiple phosphoryl-
ated daughter ions as indicated (bold under-
lined), consistent with the structure
DGMDNETGTEpSMVpSHR. (B) Serines 139
and 142 are conserved in vertebrate Dvl pro-
teins. The relevant region of the indicated
vertebrate Dvl1–Dvl13 were aligned using
CLUSTALW. Invariant residues are shown in
black boxes, similar residues are shown in
gray boxes with white letters, and highly
conserved residues are shown in gray boxes
with black letters. Acidic residues N-terminal
to the putative phosphorylation sites are
also highly conserved.
L. K. Klimowski et al. Regulation of Dvl-1 by CKIe
FEBS Journal 273 (2006) 4594–4602 ª 2006 The Authors Journal compilation ª 2006 FEBS 4597
and 142 resulted in attenuated canonical Wnt signal
transduction in cell culture, we hypothesized that the
S139 ⁄ 142A mutation would partially inhibit secondary
axis formation in Xenopus development. First, we
examined the synergistic effect of coinjection of low
levels of CKIe with wild-type or phosphorylation-site
mutant XDsh into Xenopus ventral blastomeres at the
four-cell stage (n ¼ 30). Injection of 100 pg of control
green fluorescent protein mRNA produced no pheno-
type. Fifty picograms of CKIe or myc-tagged
(MT)XDsh mRNA alone produced a minimal pheno-
type. However, coinjection of 50 pg each of CKIe and
MTXDsh wild-type resulted in 81% secondary axis
formation in Xenopus embryos at day 1. In contrast,
coinjection of 50 pg each of CKIe and MTXDsh
S139 ⁄ 142A resulted in 28% less secondary axis forma-
tion (Fig. 4, top). Coinjection of 50 pg of CKIe K38A
with MTXDsh or MTXDsh S139 ⁄ 142A did not signifi-
cantly increase the secondary axis phenotype. Coinjec-
tion experiments with IC-261 were not performed.
Western blot analysis of embryo lysates at stage 21
indicated equivalent levels of MTXDsh wild-type and
S139 ⁄ 142A protein, confirming that the difference was
not due simply to changes in XDsh expression levels
(Fig. 4, bottom).
We next examined the ability of high ectopic expres-
sion levels of XDsh wild-type and XDsh S139 ⁄ 142A
mRNA to induce secondary axis formation. For this
experiment, we injected either 1 ng of MTXDsh wild-
type or 1 ng of MTXDsh S139 ⁄ 142A mRNA into the
ventral blastomere at the four-cell stage (n ¼ 30).
Embryos were scored for phenotypes after stage 21
(day 1). Secondary axis development was 8% higher in
embryos injected with MTXDsh wild-type mRNA
than in the mutant, and incomplete axis development
was 10% higher in MTXDsh wild-type embyros than
in the mutant (data not shown; P-value < 0.3). These
results were not statistically significant, and suggest
that high levels of ectopic XDsh expression compen-
sate for the activity change regulated by phosphoryla-
tion of serines 139 and 142. Taken together, our data
suggest that CKIe phosphorylationof Dvl at S139 and
S142 positively regulates Dvl activity in both the mam-
malian and Xenopus systems.
A recent study examined mutation of candidate CKI
phosphorylation sites in Dvl-1 by replacement with
acidic residues [13]. In particular, a multiple mutant
with replacement of threonines 135 and 137, as well as
serines 139 and 142, by negatively charged aspartic
acid residues did not induce Wnt–b-catenin ⁄ Lef-1 tran-
scription activation. Our phosphopeptide maps suggest
that threonines 135 and 137 are not phosphorylated
in vivo, at least under basal conditions. If the CKIe-
phosphorylated tryptic peptides had additionally been
phosphorylated on theonines 135 and 137, we
would have expected a shift in the location of these
AB C
Fig. 2. Mouse Dishevelled 1 (mDvl-1) serines 139 and 142 are phosphorylated in vivo by caseinkinase I (CKI). Two-dimensional tryptic phos-
phopeptide maps of Myc epitope (MT)–mDvl-1 labeled in vivo with [
32
P]orthophosphate. (A) 0.5 lg of MT mouse Dishevelled 1 (mDvl-1)
wild-type; (B) 0.5 lg of MT–mDvl-1 S139 ⁄ 142A; and (C) 0.5 lg of MT–mDvl-1 wild-type in the presence of the caseinkinase I (CKI) inhibitor
IC-261 (20 l
M for the last hour of labeling). Phosphopeptides a and b are absent in both MT–mDvl 1S139 ⁄ 142A and in the MT–mDvl-1 wild-
type sample treated with the CKI inhibitor IC-261. IC-261 treatment also leads to loss of the phosphopeptides indicated by boxes c and d in
Fig. 2B, suggesting the presence of additional CKI sites on Dvl-1.
Regulation of Dvl-1 by CKIe L. K. Klimowski et al.
4598 FEBS Journal 273 (2006) 4594–4602 ª 2006 The Authors Journal compilation ª 2006 FEBS
32
P-labeled peptides rather than their complete dis-
appearance after mutation of serines 139 and 142
(Fig. 2A,B). However, consistent with this report [13],
we also found that mutation of mDvl-1 serines 139
and 142 to aspartic acids did not induce activation of
Wnt–b-catenin ⁄ Lef-1 transcription (data not shown).
Therefore, negatively charged residues surrounding
and including serines 139 and 142 are not sufficient to
promote Dvl activity in b-catenin ⁄ Lef-1 transcription.
Taken together, our data suggest that the primary
function of CKIe phosphorylationof Dvl at serines
139 and 142 is to regulate the intensity of Wnt signal
transduction.
The LC-MS ⁄ MS approach was successful in identify-
ing several CKI-specific in vitro phosphorylation sites
on mDvl-1. The results of further analysis using peptide
mapping and biological assays suggest that only two of
these sites were physiologically relevant, given the limi-
tations of the assays. In vitro phosphorylation events
may not reflect in vivo phosphorylation, due to multiple
factors, including differences in concentrations of the
substrate and kinase, the presence of associated regula-
tory proteins in the cell, activity of protein phosphatas-
es, and the need in some cases for prior phosphorylation
by ‘priming’ kinases that generate CKI recognition sites.
Furthermore, the IMAC MS method may enrich subsets
of phosphopeptides and fail to isolate others.
CKIe and Dvl play multiple roles as regulators of
Wnt signaling pathways. Our data suggest that one
function of CKIe is to phosphorylate positive regula-
tory sites on Dvl-1. The consequence of these specific
phosphorylation events is significantly enhanced
b-catenin-dependent signaling. Wnt signaling, by acti-
A
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
0.00 0.25 0.50 1.00
Fold increase Lef-1:Luciferase
µg transfected MT-mDvl-1
C
+
-
+
- -
+
-
MT-mDvl-1 wt
- + - + - + -
MT-mDvl-1 S139/142A
CKIε K38A
- - - -
+ +
-
CKIε wt
+ + - - - - -
MT-mDvl-1
β-catenin
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
B
actin
MT-mDvl-1 S139/142A
actin
MT-mDvl-1 wt
1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
mDvl-1 wt
mDvl-1 S139/142A
Fig. 3. Caseinkinase I (CKI) phosphorylation at mouse Dishevelled 1
(mDvl-1) serines 139 and 142 contributes to Wnt signal transduc-
tion. (A) Mutation of serines 139 and 142 attenuates the ability of
mDvl-1 to activate transcription from a Wnt-responsive promoter.
Increasing concentrations of Myc epitope (MT)–mDvl-1 wild-type or
MT–mDvl-1 S139 ⁄ 142A were transiently expressed in HEK293 cells
and assayed for transactivation of a Lef-1-responsive reporter. Loss
of phosphorylation sites S139 and S142 caused approximately
a two-fold decrease in transcriptional activation compared with
MT–mDvl-1 wild-type (P-values < 0.01). (B) Mutation of serines 139
and 142 does not alter the abundance of mDvl-1 in transfected cells.
HEK293 lysates were probed with anti-Myc antibody and b-actin.
The figure shows samples from the experiment in Fig. 3A, with all
lanes from the same immunoblot. Lanes 1–3, 0.25–1.0 lg of MT–
mDvl-1; lane 4, 1.0 lg of MT empty vector. (C) Mutation of mDvl-1
serines 139 and 142 decreases the CKIe-induced electrophoretic
mobility shift. MT–mDvl-1 wild-type (0.1 lg) and MT–mDvl-1
S139 ⁄ 142A (0.1 lg) were transiently expressed in HEK293 cells
along with wild-type CKIe (0.5 lg) or dominant negative CKIe (K38A)
as indicated.
XDsh S139/142A + CKIε
XDsh wild type + CKIε
XDsh S139/142A
XDsh wild type
GFP
CKIε
percent phenotype
020406080100
complete secondary axis
incomplete secondary axis
MT-mDvl-1
Actin
Fig. 4. Dsh S139 ⁄ 142A mRNA attenuates double axis formation in
Xenopus day 1 embryos. Top: Xenopus embryos at the four-cell
stage were injected ventrally with low doses (50 pg each) of casein
kinase I (CKIe) and MTXDsh mRNA that individually do not induce
secondary axis formation. Where necessary, mRNA for green fluor-
escent protein (GFP) was coinjected so that 100 pg of mRNA was
always used. Coinjection of CKIe with MTXDsh wild-type mRNA
synergistically induces secondary axis formation (Fisher’s exact
test, P-values < 0.00005). The percentage of secondary axis pheno-
type is attenuated in Xenopus embryos coinjected with CKIe
(50 pg) and MTXDsh S139 ⁄ 142A (50 pg) mRNA [Fisher’s exact test
(one-sided), P-values < 0.023]. Bottom: Western blot analysis of
25 lg of total protein from embryo lysates at stage 21; anti-Myc,
top; anti-b-actin, below. Lane 1, uninjected; lane 2, CKIe; lane 3,
MTXDsh wild-type; lane 4, MTXDsh S139 ⁄ 142A; lane 5, MTXDsh
wild-type and CKIe; lane 6, MTXDsh S139 ⁄ 142A and CKIe.
L. K. Klimowski et al. Regulation of Dvl-1 by CKIe
FEBS Journal 273 (2006) 4594–4602 ª 2006 The Authors Journal compilation ª 2006 FEBS 4599
vating CKIe and facilitating Dvl-1 phosphorylation at
serines 139 and 142, may be one of several mechanisms
to modulate and reinforce signal strength. This com-
plex regulation of Dvl-1 function may be critical to
obtain the diverse effects seen from Wnt signaling in
different tissues. The quantitative changes in Dvl-1
function and resultant b-catenin signal intensity dem-
onstrated here may regulate the shape and extent of
signaling gradients and are therefore likely to be crit-
ical in the correct establishment of proliferative zones
and developmental boundaries.
Materials and methods
Plasmids and antibodies
The expression plasmid pCS2-Myc-mDvl-1 encodes six cop-
ies of the Myc epitope (MT) fused at the N-terminus to
mDvl-1 (MT-mDvl-1). Point mutants were constructed by
site-directed mutagenesis, and all mutants were resequenced
to confirm the presence of the desired mutation and absence
of unplanned mutations [12]. TOPFLASH, pEV3S-Lef-1 and
pRL-SV40 were kindly provided by H. Clevers (Robert-
Roessle-Klinik, Berlin, Germany), M. Waterman (University
of California, Irvine, CA, USA), and D. Ayer (University of
Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA), respectively. Anti-Myc
monoclonal antibody (9E10) was obtained from Santa Cruz
Biotechnology (Santa Cruz, CA, USA).
In vitro phosphorylationof mDvl-1
MBP–mDvl-1 and constitutively active CKI were purified
essentially as previously described [12,21]. In vitro kinase
reactions were performed using 4 pmol of MBP–mDvl-1,
200 lm ATP, 5 mm dithiothreitol, 10 mm MgCl
2
, and
100 nm His
6
-CKID319, and incubated at 37 °C for 5–
30 min. The reactions were terminated by addition of SDS
loading buffer and heating at 100 °C for 5 min. Samples
were analyzed by SDS ⁄ PAGE.
Sample preparation and MS analysis
SDS ⁄ PAGE gel bands of phosphorylated MBP–mDvl-1
were sliced into 1 mm cubes and washed with 100 lLof
0.1 m ammonium bicarbonate buffer (pH 8.0). The diced
cubes were reduced and alkylated using 10 mm dithiothrei-
tol and 50 mm iodoacetamide, respectively. The gel pieces
were then dehydrated and reswollen in a minimal volume
of 0.1 m ammonium bicarbonate buffer containing
12.5 ngÆlL
)1
trypsin (Roche, Indianapolis, IN) and allowed
to digest overnight at room temperature. Peptides were
extracted with 100 lL of 50% acetonitrile containing 5.0%
formic acid for 15 min (two cycles), followed by a further
extraction with 100% acetonitrile. The extracted peptide
solutions were then concentrated to a volume of about
1.0 lL. The samples were brought up to 20 lL with 0.1%
acetic acid for MS analysis using conventional C18 liquid
chromatography.
Each gel band solution sample was loaded onto a
360 lm outside diameter (o.d.) · 75 lm inside diameter
(i.d.) microcapillary fused silica column packed with C18
irregular 5–20 lm resin (Polymicro Technologies, Phoenix,
AZ). After sample loading, the precolumn was washed with
0.1% acetic acid for 15 min to remove any buffer salts. The
precolumn was then connected to a 360 lm o.d. · 50 lm
i.d. analytical column (Polymicro Technologies) packed
with C18 regular 5 lm resin constructed with an integrated
electrospray emitter tip [22]. Additionally, IMAC was util-
ized to enrich for phosphopeptides [23]. Samples were first
prepared for IMAC by converting peptides to their corres-
ponding methyl esters by addition of 100 lL of methyl
ester reagent (160 lL of acetyl chloride in 1 mL of MeOH)
and incubation at room temperature for 1 h. Methanolic
HCl was used to reduce nonspecific binding of acidic pep-
tides. Peptide samples were then dried and resuspended in
a 1 : 1 : 1 mixture of MeOH ⁄ MeCN ⁄ 0.1% acetic acid.
IMAC columns were constructed by packing capillary col-
umns (360 o.d. · 100 i.d.) with 8 cm POROS 20 MC
(Applied Biosystems, Framingham, MA). IMAC columns
were first activated with a 100 mm FeCl
3
solution (Aldrich,
Milwaukee, WI). Samples were loaded onto the IMAC col-
umns and washed with several column volumes of 0.01%
acetic acid. After phosphopeptides were bound to the
columns, they were eluted with 250 mm Na
2
HPO
4
(pH 6)
(Aldrich) onto C18 packed capillary precolumns. Samples
were then gradient eluted (Agilent 1100 Series; Santa Clara,
CA) directly into a Finnigan LCQ quadrupole ion trap
mass spectrometer (Thermo Electron, San Jose, CA) at a
flow rate of 60 nLÆmin
)1
. The nano-flow HPLC gradient
used was 0–60% acetonitrile in 0.1% acetic acid in 90 min.
The ion trap mass spectrometer was operated in the data-
dependent mode, where an initial MS scan recorded the
m ⁄ z ratios of parent ions over the mass range 300–
2000 Da. The five most abundant ions were then selected
for subsequent collisionally activated dissociation (CAD)
and an MS ⁄ MS spectrum was recorded. All MS ⁄ MS data
were searched using the sequest program and validated
manually.
In vivo assays
LEF1-luciferase reporter assays were performed as previ-
ously described [14], with pCS2-MTmDvl-1 wild-type,
MTmDvl-1 S139 ⁄ 142A ⁄ D ⁄ E, or MT empty vector (0.025–
1 lg) transfected into HEK293 cells in 35 mm dishes along
with TOPFLASH (500 ng), pEV3S-Lef-1 (100 ng), and
pRL-SV40 (100 ng). Experiments were performed three sep-
arate times with three replicates (n ¼ 3) in each experiment.
Regulation of Dvl-1 by CKIe L. K. Klimowski et al.
4600 FEBS Journal 273 (2006) 4594–4602 ª 2006 The Authors Journal compilation ª 2006 FEBS
Data are presented as mean ± SD from three separate
wells.
Phosphopeptide maps of immunoprecipitated
32
P-labeled
MT–mDvl-1 wild-type and MT–mDvl-1 S139 ⁄ 142A were
performed in HEK293 cells as previously described [12]. For
the inhibitor studies, 20 lm IC-261, a CKIe ⁄ d-selective inhib-
itor [19], was added for the final hour of labeling.
Xenopus embryo injections and analysis of phenotypes
were performed as previously described [14]. MTXDsh
cDNA was obtained from S Sokol (Department of Micro-
biology and Molecular Gentics, Harvard Medical School).
The XDsh sequence is most closely related to other verteb-
rate Dvl-2 sequences (see Fig. 1B). Embryos were scored
for secondary axis formation at stage 20, approximately
22 h postinjection.
Acknowledgements
We thank Kenneth Boucher for statistical analysis,
and members of the Virshup and Yost laboratories for
technical advice and helpful discussions. These studies
were supported by The Huntsman Cancer Foundation,
the Willard Snow Hansen Chair in Cancer Research
(DMV), NIH R01 CA-71074 and P01 CA73992
(DMV) and GM 37537 (DFH).
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Regulation of Dvl-1 by CKIe L. K. Klimowski et al.
. Site-specific casein kinase 1e-dependent phosphorylation of Dishevelled modulates b-catenin signaling Laura K. Klimowski 1, *, Benjamin A. Garcia 2,† ,. regulation of the Wnt B-catenin signaling pathway is critical to many aspects of development and cancer. Casein kinase Ie is a Wnt-activa- ted positive regulator of this pathway. Members of the Dishevelled. culture and in Xenopus development. Casein kinase I epsilon is a Wnt-regulated kinase, and regulated phosphorylation of Dvl allows fine tuning of the Wnt b-catenin signaling pathway. Abbreviations CAD,