Impaired ionizing radiation-induced activation of a nuclear signal essential for phosphorylation of c-Jun by dually phosphorylated c-Jun amino-terminal kinases in ataxia telangiectasia fibroblasts

The c-Jun amino-terminal kinases (JNKs) participate in intracellular signaling in response to cytokines and cellular stresses. JNKs are activated by phosphorylation on two critical residues, the threonine 183 and tyrosine 185, within the TPY motif. The activated JNKs, in turn, phosphorylate the nuclear protein c-Jun, a major component of the transcription factor AP1. In vitro studies have revealed a defect in ionizing radiation-induced activation of the JNK signaling pathway in lymphoblastoid cells from individuals with ataxia telangiectasia (AT). However, the biochemical basis for this signaling defect is not clear. Here, we show that ionizing radiation induces the phosphorylation of endogenous c-Jun in normal fibroblasts but not in AT fibroblasts. The p46 isoforms of dually phosphorylated JNKs were detected in the nuclei of both normal and AT fibroblasts following exposure to ionizing radiation or sham radiation. However, c-Jun kinase activity was detected in normal cells but not in AT cells. Furthermore, an exogenous purified active JNK protein was able to phosphorylate endogenous c-Jun in nuclear extracts only of normal cells and only after the cells were irradiated. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays also showed that the ionizing radiation-induced increase in the DNA binding activity of AP1 observed in normal cells was absent or markedly reduced in AT cell lines. These data suggest that the defect in ionizing radiation-induced signaling through c-Jun in AT cells is the result of impaired function of an unknown nuclear protein or proteins that negatively regulate both JNK and c-Jun.