Guerra Barbara, Issinger Olaf-Georg
Institute for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Southern Denmark, Campusvej 55, 5230 Odense, Denmark.
Curr Med Chem. 2008;15(19):1870-86. doi: 10.2174/092986708785132933.
Protein kinase CK2 (formerly referred to as casein kinase II) is an evolutionary conserved, ubiquitous protein kinase. There are two paralog catalytic subunits, i.e. alpha (A1) and alpha' (A2). The alpha and alpha' subunits are linked to two beta subunits to produce a heterotetrameric structure. The catalytic alpha subunits are distantly related to the CMGC subfamily of kinases, such as the Cdk kinases. There are some peculiarities associated with protein kinase CK2, which are not found with most other protein kinases: (i) the enzyme is constitutively active, (ii) it can use ATP and GTP and (iii) it is found elevated in most tumors investigated and rapidly proliferating tissues. With the elucidation of the structure of the catalytic subunit, it was possible to explain why the enzyme is constitutively active [1] and why it can bind GTP [2]. Considerable information on the potential roles of CK2 in various disease processes including cancer has been gained in recent years, and the present review may help to further elucidate its aberrant role in many disease states. Its peculiar structural features [3-9] may be advantageous in designing tailor-made compounds with the possibility to specifically target this protein kinase [10]. Since not all the aspects of what has been published on CK2 can be covered in this review, we would like to recommend the following reviews; (i) for general information on CK2 [11-18] and (ii) with a focus on aberrant CK2 [19-22].
蛋白激酶CK2（以前称为酪蛋白激酶II）是一种进化保守的、普遍存在的蛋白激酶。有两个旁系催化亚基，即α（A1）和α'（A2）。α和α'亚基与两个β亚基相连，形成异源四聚体结构。催化性α亚基与激酶的CMGC亚家族，如细胞周期蛋白依赖性激酶（Cdk）激酶，有较远的亲缘关系。蛋白激酶CK2有一些独特之处，这在大多数其他蛋白激酶中是找不到的：（i）该酶组成型激活；（ii）它可以利用ATP和GTP；（iii）在大多数研究的肿瘤和快速增殖组织中其水平升高。随着催化亚基结构的阐明，有可能解释该酶为何组成型激活[1]以及为何能结合GTP[2]。近年来，关于CK2在包括癌症在内的各种疾病过程中的潜在作用已获得了大量信息，本综述可能有助于进一步阐明其在许多疾病状态中的异常作用。其独特的结构特征[3 - 9]可能有利于设计量身定制的化合物，从而有可能特异性靶向这种蛋白激酶[10]。由于本综述无法涵盖已发表的关于CK2的所有方面，我们推荐以下综述：（i）关于CK2的一般信息[11 - 18]；（ii）关注异常CK2的[19 - 22]。
