%0 Journal Article
%T PAK4 signaling in health and disease: defining the PAK4¨CCREB axis
%J -
%D 2019
%R https://doi.org/10.1038/s12276-018-0204-0
%X p21-Activated kinase 4 (PAK4), a member of the PAK family, regulates a wide range of cellular functions, including cell adhesion, migration, proliferation, and survival. Dysregulation of its expression and activity thus contributes to the development of diverse pathological conditions. PAK4 plays a pivotal role in cancer progression by accelerating the epithelial¨Cmesenchymal transition, invasion, and metastasis. Therefore, PAK4 is regarded as an attractive therapeutic target in diverse types of cancers, prompting the development of PAK4-specific inhibitors as anticancer drugs; however, these drugs have not yet been successful. PAK4 is essential for embryonic brain development and has a neuroprotective function. A long list of PAK4 effectors has been reported. Recently, the transcription factor CREB has emerged as a novel effector of PAK4. This finding has broad implications for the role of PAK4 in health and disease because CREB-mediated transcriptional reprogramming involves a wide range of genes. In this article, we review the PAK4 signaling pathways involved in prostate cancer, Parkinson¡¯s disease, and melanogenesis, focusing in particular on the PAK4-CREB axis
%U https://www.nature.com/articles/s12276-018-0204-0