Protein Domain : Mitogen-activated protein kinase 12 IPR038786

Type	Family
Description	p38 kinases are mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs), which serve as important mediators of cellular responses to extracellular signals. They are activated by the MAPK kinases MKK3 and MKK6, which in turn are activated by upstream MAPK kinase kinases including TAK1, ASK1, and MLK3, in response to cellular stresses or inflammatory cytokines [ ].Vertebrates contain four p38 kinases, named alpha, beta, gamma, and delta, which show varying substrate specificity and expression patterns.p38gamma/MAPK12 is predominantly expressed in skeletal muscle. Unlike p38alpha and p38beta, p38gamma is insensitive to pyridinylimidazoles [ , ]. It displays an antagonizing function compared to p38alpha. p38gamma inhibits, while p38alpha stimulates, c-Jun phosphorylation and AP-1 mediated transcription []. p38gamma also plays a role in the signaling between Ras and the estrogen receptor and has been implicated to increase cell invasion and breast cancer progression []. In Xenopus, p38gamma is critical in the meiotic maturation of oocytes [].
Short Name	p38gamma