1Neuroscience Research Institute and Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Key Laboratory for Neuroscience, Ministry of Education/National Health and Family Planning Commission, Peking University, Beijing 100191, China
2PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China

Abstract 

Protein kinase D (PKD) is an evolutionarily-conserved family of protein kinases. It has structural, regulatory, and enzymatic properties quite different from the PKC family. Many stimuli induce PKD signaling, including G-protein-coupled receptor agonists and growth factors. PKD1 is the most studied member of the family. It functions during cell proliferation, differentiation, secretion, cardiac hypertrophy, immune regulation, angiogenesis, and cancer. Previously, we found that PKD1 is also critically involved in pain modulation. Since then, a series of studies performed in our lab and by other groups have shown that PKDs also participate in other processes in the nervous system including neuronal polarity establishment, neuroprotection, and learning. Here, we discuss the connections between PKD structure, enzyme function, and localization, and summarize the recent findings on the roles of PKD-mediated signaling in the nervous system.

Keywords

PKD; neuronal polarity; pain modulation; neuroprotection; learning

[SpringerLink]