A unique type of GSK-3 inhibitor brings new opportunities to the clinic

Recent advances in understanding the cellular roles of GSK-3

Glycogen synthase kinase-3 (GSK-3) is a ubiquitously expressed protein kinase that sits at the nexus of multiple signaling pathways. Its deep integration into cellular control circuits is consummate to its implication in diseases ranging from mood disorders to diabetes to neurodegenerative diseases and cancers. The selectivity and insulation of such a promiscuous kinase from unwanted crosstalk between pathways, while orchestrating a multifaceted response to cellular stimuli, offer key insights into more general mechanisms of cell regulation. Here, we review recent advances that have contributed to the understanding of GSK-3 and its role in driving appreciation of intracellular signal coordination.

2016: Signaling Breakthroughs of the Year

Signaling breakthroughs of 2016 clustered mainly in the areas of neuroscience, immunology, and metabolism, with excursions into plant hormone signaling and bacterial manipulation of host signaling pathways. Perhaps reflecting the growing maturity of the discipline of cell signaling, many of this year's breakthroughs have implications for the pathogenesis or treatment of human disease.

Glycogen Synthase Kinase 3: A Kinase for All Pathways?

Glycogen synthase kinase-3 (GSK-3) is an unusual protein-serine kinase in that it is primarily regulated by inhibition and lies downstream of multiple cell signaling pathways. This raises a variety of questions in terms of its physiological role(s), how signaling specificity is maintained and why so many eggs have been placed into one basket. There are actually two baskets, as there are two isoforms, GSK-3α and β, that are highly related and largely redundant. Their many substrates range from regulators of cellular metabolism to molecules that control growth and differentiation. In this chapter, we review the characteristics of GSK-3, update progress in understanding the kinase, and try to answer some of the questions raised by its unusual properties. Indeed, the kinase may trigger transformation in our thinking of how cellular signals are organized and controlled.

Science Signaling Podcast for 15 November 2016: A new type of kinase inhibitor

This Podcast features an interview with Hagit Eldar-Finkelman, author of a Research Article that appears in the 15 November 2016 issue of Science Signaling, about a newly developed inhibitor of glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK-3). GSK-3 participates in several signaling networks and has been implicated in various pathologies, including neurodegenerative diseases, cognitive impairments, and cancer. Licht-Murava et al developed L807mts, a substrate-competitive peptide inhibitor that blocks GSK-3 activity through an unusual mechanism. L807mts not only bound to the substrate recognition domain of GSK-3, it was also phosphorylated by the kinase. This phosphorylated form of L807mts remained associated with GSK-3 and inhibited GSK-3 activity. L807mts treatment reduced cellular, cognitive, and behavioral symptoms in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease. L807mts is an advance in kinase inhibitor development because it is both highly specific and very potent.Listen to Podcast.