PIKK

PI3K-related kinases (PIKKs) are six giant Ser/Thr kinases whose catalytic cores resemble PI3K lipid kinases rather than classical protein kinases: ATM, ATR, DNA-PKcs, mTOR, SMG1, and the pseudokinase TRRAP. ATM, ATR, and DNA-PKcs lead the DNA damage response, phosphorylating H2AX, p53, CHK1/CHK2, and hundreds of other substrates after double-strand breaks or replication stress. mTOR nucleates the nutrient-sensing complexes mTORC1 and mTORC2 that control growth, metabolism, and autophagy. SMG1 guards mRNA quality through nonsense-mediated decay, and TRRAP scaffolds histone acetyltransferase complexes without catalytic activity. PIKKs are central to genome-stability, aging, and cancer research, anchor approved and investigational drugs such as mTOR and ATR inhibitors, and recombinant PIKKs serve kinase and inhibitor screening.