Publications

2026

Baseline cellular state shapes the molecular impact of mutant <em>KRAS</em> alleles in reconstituted pancreatic cancer cells
Quiñones-Avilés Y, Salovska B, Markham CS, Di Y, Turk BE, Liu Y, Muzumdar MD. Baseline cellular state shapes the molecular impact of mutant KRAS alleles in reconstituted pancreatic cancer cells. Molecular Omics 2026, aaiag022. DOI: 10.1093/molecular-omics/aaiag022.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
This study shows that in pancreatic cancer cells, a cell's baseline state—not which KRAS mutation it carries—drives its molecular behavior.
Full Summary
Baseline cellular state dictates the molecular impact of KRAS mutant variants in pancreatic cancer cells.
Quiñones-Avilés Y, Salovska B, Markham CS, Di Y, Turk BE, Liu Y, Muzumdar MD. Baseline cellular state dictates the molecular impact of KRAS mutant variants in pancreatic cancer cells. BioRxiv 2026 PMID: 41959224, DOI: 10.64898/2026.03.10.710185.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research

2025

Cancer hotspot mutations rewire ERK2 specificity by selective exclusion of docking interactions
Robles J, Stiegler A, Boggon T, Turk B. Cancer hotspot mutations rewire ERK2 specificity by selective exclusion of docking interactions. Journal Of Biological Chemistry 2025, 301: 108348. PMID: 40015635, PMCID: PMC11982978, DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2025.108348.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research

2024

Setdb1 Loss Induces Type I Interferons and Immune Clearance of Melanoma.
McGeary M, Damsky W, Daniels A, Lang S, Xu Q, Song E, Huet-Calderwood C, Lou H, Paradkar S, Micevic G, Kaech S, Calderwood D, Turk B, Yan Q, Iwasaki A, Bosenberg M. Setdb1 Loss Induces Type I Interferons and Immune Clearance of Melanoma. Cancer Immunology Research 2024, 13: 245-257. PMID: 39589394, DOI: 10.1158/2326-6066.cir-23-0514.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
Aurora B controls anaphase onset and error-free chromosome segregation in trypanosomes
Ballmer D, Lou H, Ishii M, Turk B, Akiyoshi B. Aurora B controls anaphase onset and error-free chromosome segregation in trypanosomes. Journal Of Cell Biology 2024, 223: e202401169. PMID: 39196069, PMCID: PMC11354203, DOI: 10.1083/jcb.202401169.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
MeSH Keywords
Protein phosphatase 6 activates NF-κB to confer sensitivity to MAPK pathway inhibitors in KRAS- and BRAF-mutant cancer cells
Zhang H, Read A, Cataisson C, Yang H, Lee W, Turk B, Yuspa S, Luo J. Protein phosphatase 6 activates NF-κB to confer sensitivity to MAPK pathway inhibitors in KRAS- and BRAF-mutant cancer cells. Science Signaling 2024, 17: eadd5073-eadd5073. PMID: 38743809, PMCID: PMC11238902, DOI: 10.1126/scisignal.add5073.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
MeSH Keywords
The intrinsic substrate specificity of the human tyrosine kinome
Yaron-Barir T, Joughin B, Huntsman E, Kerelsky A, Cizin D, Cohen B, Regev A, Song J, Vasan N, Lin T, Orozco J, Schoenherr C, Sagum C, Bedford M, Wynn R, Tso S, Chuang D, Li L, Li S, Creixell P, Krismer K, Takegami M, Lee H, Zhang B, Lu J, Cossentino I, Landry S, Uduman M, Blenis J, Elemento O, Frame M, Hornbeck P, Cantley L, Turk B, Yaffe M, Johnson J. The intrinsic substrate specificity of the human tyrosine kinome. Nature 2024, 629: 1174-1181. PMID: 38720073, PMCID: PMC11136658, DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07407-y.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
Distinct functional constraints driving conservation of the cofilin N-terminal regulatory tail
Sexton J, Potchernikov T, Bibeau J, Casanova-Sepúlveda G, Cao W, Lou H, Boggon T, De La Cruz E, Turk B. Distinct functional constraints driving conservation of the cofilin N-terminal regulatory tail. Nature Communications 2024, 15: 1426. PMID: 38365893, PMCID: PMC10873347, DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-45878-9.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
MeSH Keywords
The CUL5 E3 ligase complex negatively regulates central signaling pathways in CD8+ T cells
Liao X, Li W, Zhou H, Rajendran B, Li A, Ren J, Luan Y, Calderwood D, Turk B, Tang W, Liu Y, Wu D. The CUL5 E3 ligase complex negatively regulates central signaling pathways in CD8+ T cells. Nature Communications 2024, 15: 603. PMID: 38242867, PMCID: PMC10798966, DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-44885-0.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
MeSH Keywords

2023

Autoregulation of the LIM kinases by their PDZ domain
Casanova-Sepúlveda G, Sexton J, Turk B, Boggon T. Autoregulation of the LIM kinases by their PDZ domain. Nature Communications 2023, 14: 8441. PMID: 38114480, PMCID: PMC10730565, DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-44148-4.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
MeSH Keywords
Linear motif specificity in signaling through p38α and ERK2 mitogen–activated protein kinases
Robles J, Lou H, Shi G, Pan P, Turk B. Linear motif specificity in signaling through p38α and ERK2 mitogen–activated protein kinases. Proceedings Of The National Academy Of Sciences Of The United States Of America 2023, 120: e2316599120. PMID: 37988460, PMCID: PMC10691213, DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2316599120.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
MeSH Keywords
An optogenetic-phosphoproteomic study reveals dynamic Akt1 signaling profiles in endothelial cells
Zhou W, Li W, Wang S, Salovska B, Hu Z, Tao B, Di Y, Punyamurtula U, Turk B, Sessa W, Liu Y. An optogenetic-phosphoproteomic study reveals dynamic Akt1 signaling profiles in endothelial cells. Nature Communications 2023, 14: 3803. PMID: 37365174, PMCID: PMC10293293, DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-39514-1.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
MeSH Keywords
An atlas of substrate specificities for the human serine/threonine kinome
Johnson J, Yaron T, Huntsman E, Kerelsky A, Song J, Regev A, Lin T, Liberatore K, Cizin D, Cohen B, Vasan N, Ma Y, Krismer K, Robles J, van de Kooij B, van Vlimmeren A, Andrée-Busch N, Käufer N, Dorovkov M, Ryazanov A, Takagi Y, Kastenhuber E, Goncalves M, Hopkins B, Elemento O, Taatjes D, Maucuer A, Yamashita A, Degterev A, Uduman M, Lu J, Landry S, Zhang B, Cossentino I, Linding R, Blenis J, Hornbeck P, Turk B, Yaffe M, Cantley L. An atlas of substrate specificities for the human serine/threonine kinome. Nature 2023, 613: 759-766. PMID: 36631611, PMCID: PMC9876800, DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05575-3.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
MeSH Keywords
Proteome-wide screening for mitogen-activated protein kinase docking motifs and interactors
Shi G, Song C, Robles J, Salichos L, Lou H, Lam T, Gerstein M, Turk B. Proteome-wide screening for mitogen-activated protein kinase docking motifs and interactors. Science Signaling 2023, 16: eabm5518-eabm5518. PMID: 36626580, PMCID: PMC9995140, DOI: 10.1126/scisignal.abm5518.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
MeSH Keywords

2022

Calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase kinase 2 regulates hepatic fuel metabolism
Stork BA, Dean A, Ortiz AR, Saha P, Putluri N, Planas-Silva MD, Mahmud I, Rajapakshe K, Coarfa C, Knapp S, Lorenzi PL, Kemp BE, Turk BE, Scott JW, Means AR, York B. Calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase kinase 2 regulates hepatic fuel metabolism. Molecular Metabolism 2022, 62: 101513. PMID: 35562082, PMCID: PMC9157561, DOI: 10.1016/j.molmet.2022.101513.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
MeSH Keywords
Tousled-like kinase 2 targets ASF1 histone chaperones through client mimicry
Simon B, Lou HJ, Huet-Calderwood C, Shi G, Boggon TJ, Turk BE, Calderwood DA. Tousled-like kinase 2 targets ASF1 histone chaperones through client mimicry. Nature Communications 2022, 13: 749. PMID: 35136069, PMCID: PMC8826447, DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-28427-0.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
MeSH Keywords

2021

Phosphorylated WNK kinase networks in recoded bacteria recapitulate physiological function
Schiapparelli P, Pirman NL, Mohler K, Miranda-Herrera PA, Zarco N, Kilic O, Miller C, Shah SR, Rogulina S, Hungerford W, Abriola L, Hoyer D, Turk BE, Guerrero-Cázares H, Isaacs FJ, Quiñones-Hinojosa A, Levchenko A, Rinehart J. Phosphorylated WNK kinase networks in recoded bacteria recapitulate physiological function. Cell Reports 2021, 36: 109416. PMID: 34289367, PMCID: PMC8379681, DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2021.109416.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
MeSH Keywords
Phosphorylation of Pal2 by the protein kinases Kin1 and Kin2 modulates HAC1 mRNA splicing in the unfolded protein response in yeast
Ghosh C, Uppala JK, Sathe L, Hammond CI, Anshu A, Pokkuluri PR, Turk BE, Dey M. Phosphorylation of Pal2 by the protein kinases Kin1 and Kin2 modulates HAC1 mRNA splicing in the unfolded protein response in yeast. Science Signaling 2021, 14: eaaz4401. PMID: 34035143, PMCID: PMC8285061, DOI: 10.1126/scisignal.aaz4401.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
MeSH Keywords
Pazopanib ameliorates acute lung injuries via inhibition of MAP3K2 and MAP3K3
Yuan Q, Basit A, Liang W, Qu R, Luan Y, Ren C, Li A, Xu X, Liu X, Yang C, Kuo A, Pierce R, Zhang L, Turk B, Hu X, Li F, Cui W, Li R, Huang D, Mo L, Sessa WC, Lee PJ, Kluger Y, Su B, Tang W, He J, Wu D. Pazopanib ameliorates acute lung injuries via inhibition of MAP3K2 and MAP3K3. Science Translational Medicine 2021, 13: eabc2499. PMID: 33910977, PMCID: PMC8466683, DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.abc2499.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
MeSH Keywords
PPP6C negatively regulates oncogenic ERK signaling through dephosphorylation of MEK
Cho E, Lou HJ, Kuruvilla L, Calderwood DA, Turk BE. PPP6C negatively regulates oncogenic ERK signaling through dephosphorylation of MEK. Cell Reports 2021, 34: 108928. PMID: 33789117, PMCID: PMC8068315, DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2021.108928.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
MeSH Keywords
TNIK Is a Therapeutic Target in Lung Squamous Cell Carcinoma and Regulates FAK Activation through Merlin
Torres-Ayuso P, An E, Nyswaner KM, Bensen RC, Ritt DA, Specht SI, Das S, Andresson T, Cachau RE, Liang RJ, Ries AL, Robinson CM, Difilippantonio S, Gouker B, Bassel L, Karim BO, Miller CJ, Turk BE, Morrison DK, Brognard J. TNIK Is a Therapeutic Target in Lung Squamous Cell Carcinoma and Regulates FAK Activation through Merlin. Cancer Discovery 2021, 11: 1411-1423. PMID: 33495197, PMCID: PMC8178189, DOI: 10.1158/2159-8290.cd-20-0797.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
MeSH Keywords

2020

Structure of a GRK5-Calmodulin Complex Reveals Molecular Mechanism of GRK Activation and Substrate Targeting
Komolov KE, Sulon SM, Bhardwaj A, van Keulen SC, Duc NM, Laurinavichyute DK, Lou HJ, Turk BE, Chung KY, Dror RO, Benovic JL. Structure of a GRK5-Calmodulin Complex Reveals Molecular Mechanism of GRK Activation and Substrate Targeting. Molecular Cell 2020, 81: 323-339.e11. PMID: 33321095, PMCID: PMC7855534, DOI: 10.1016/j.molcel.2020.11.026.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
MeSH Keywords
Scaffold association factor B (SAFB) is required for expression of prenyltransferases and RAS membrane association
Zhou M, Kuruvilla L, Shi X, Viviano S, Ahearn IM, Amendola CR, Su W, Badri S, Mahaffey J, Fehrenbacher N, Skok J, Schlessinger J, Turk BE, Calderwood DA, Philips MR. Scaffold association factor B (SAFB) is required for expression of prenyltransferases and RAS membrane association. Proceedings Of The National Academy Of Sciences Of The United States Of America 2020, 117: 31914-31922. PMID: 33257571, PMCID: PMC7749360, DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2005712117.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
MeSH Keywords
A kinase bioscavenger provides antibiotic resistance by extremely tight substrate binding
Terekhov SS, Mokrushina YA, Nazarov AS, Zlobin A, Zalevsky A, Bourenkov G, Golovin A, Belogurov A, Osterman IA, Kulikova AA, Mitkevich VA, Lou HJ, Turk BE, Wilmanns M, Smirnov IV, Altman S, Gabibov AG. A kinase bioscavenger provides antibiotic resistance by extremely tight substrate binding. Science Advances 2020, 6: eaaz9861. PMID: 32637600, PMCID: PMC7314540, DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aaz9861.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
Recognition of physiological phosphorylation sites by p21-activated kinase 4
Chetty AK, Sexton JA, Ha BH, Turk BE, Boggon TJ. Recognition of physiological phosphorylation sites by p21-activated kinase 4. Journal Of Structural Biology 2020, 211: 107553. PMID: 32585314, PMCID: PMC7395882, DOI: 10.1016/j.jsb.2020.107553.
Peer-Reviewed Original Research
MeSH Keywords

See All Publications