The Multi-Functional Calcium/Calmodulin Stimulated Protein Kinase (CaMK) Family: Emerging Targets for Anti-Cancer Therapeutic Intervention

  • Pharmaceuticals (Basel). 2019 Jan 7;12(1):8. doi: 10.3390/ph12010008.
Joshua S Brzozowski  1 ,  Kathryn A Skelding  2
Affiliations
  • 1. Priority Research Centre for Cancer Research, Innovation and Translation, School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy, Hunter Medical Research Institute (HMRI) and University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia. [email protected].
  • 2. Priority Research Centre for Cancer Research, Innovation and Translation, School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy, Hunter Medical Research Institute (HMRI) and University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia. [email protected].
PMID: 30621060 DOI: 10.3390/ph12010008
Abstract

The importance of CA2+ signalling in key events of Cancer cell function and tumour progression, such as proliferation, migration, invasion and survival, has recently begun to be appreciated. Many cellular CA2+-stimulated signalling cascades utilise the intermediate, Calmodulin (CaM). The CA2+/CaM complex binds and activates a variety of Enzymes, including members of the multifunctional CA2+/calmodulin-stimulated protein kinase (CaMK) family. These Enzymes control a broad range of cancer-related functions in a multitude of tumour types. Herein, we explore the cancer-related functions of these kinases and discuss their potential as targets for therapeutic intervention.

Keywords
CaMKI; CaMKII; CaMKIV; CaMKK; anti-cancer drugs.