Korean J Otorhinolaryngol-Head Neck Surg.  2011 Dec;54(12):813-818. 10.3342/kjorl-hns.2011.54.12.813.

p21-Activated Kinases (PAKs) as a Therapeutic Target

• Koo BS

• KMID: 2277281
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3342/kjorl-hns.2011.54.12.813

Abstract

p21-activated kinases (PAKs) are a family of serine/threonine protein kinases comprised of six isoform (PAK1-6), all of which are direct targets of the small GTPases Rac and Cdc42. PAKs have recently been shown to regulate various cellular activities, including cell motility, survival and proliferation, the organization and function of cytoskeleton and extracellular matrix, transcription and translation. PAKs are overexpressed or hyperactivated in several human tumor, such as breast cancer, gastric cancer, ovarian cancer etc., which makes them an attractive new therapeutic targets. Thus, there has been considerable interest in the development of inhibitors to the PAKs, as biological markers and leads for the development of therapeutics.

Keyword

p21-activated kinases; Neoplasms; Protein kinase inhibitors; Signal transduction

MeSH Terms

Biomarkers
Breast Neoplasms
Cell Movement
Cytoskeleton
Extracellular Matrix
Humans
Monomeric GTP-Binding Proteins
Ovarian Neoplasms
p21-Activated Kinases
Protein Kinase Inhibitors
Protein Kinases
Signal Transduction
Stomach Neoplasms
Monomeric GTP-Binding Proteins
Protein Kinase Inhibitors
Protein Kinases
p21-Activated Kinases