JAK-STAT Signaling Pathway - Mechanism

Mechanism

JAKs, which have tyrosine kinase activity, bind to some cell surface cytokine receptors. The binding of the ligand to the receptor triggers activation of JAKs. With increased kinase activity, they phosphorylate tyrosine residues on the receptor and create sites for interaction with proteins that contain phosphotyrosine-binding SH2 domains. STATs possessing SH2 domains capable of binding these phosphotyrosine residues are recruited to the receptors, and are themselves tyrosine-phosphorylated by JAKs. These phosphotyrosines then act as binding sites for SH2 domains of other STATs, mediating their dimerization. Different STATs form hetero- or homodimers. Activated STAT dimers accumulate in the cell nucleus and activate transcription of their target genes. STATs may also be tyrosine-phosphorylated directly by receptor tyrosine kinases, such as the epidermal growth factor receptor, as well as by non-receptor tyrosine kinases such as c-src.

The pathway is negatively regulated on multiple levels. Protein tyrosine phosphatases remove phosphates from cytokine receptors and activated STATs. More recently identified suppressors of cytokine signalling (SOCS) inhibit STAT phosphorylation by binding and inhibiting JAKs or competing with STATs for phosphotyrosine binding sites on cytokine receptors. STATs are also negatively regulated by protein inhibitors of activated STAT (PIAS), which act in the nucleus through several mechanisms. For example, PIAS1 and PIAS3 inhibit transcriptional activation by STAT1 and STAT3 respectively by binding and blocking access to the DNA sequences they recognize.