Human p38 delta MAP kinase mediates UV irradiation induced up-regulation of the gene expression of chemokine BRAK/CXCL14

The mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) family comprises ERK, JNK, p38 and ERK5 (big-MAPK, BMK1). UV irradiation of squamous cell carcinoma cells induced up-regulation of gene expression of chemokine BRAK/CXCL14, stimulated p38 phosphorylation, and down-regulated the phosphorylation of ERK. Human p38 MAPKs exist in 4 isoforms: p38 alpha, beta, gamma and delta. The UV stimulation of p38 phosphorylation was not inhibited by the presence of SB203580 or PD169316, inhibitors of p38 alpha and beta, suggesting p38 phosphorylation was not dependent on these 2 isoforms and that p38 gamma and/or delta was responsible for the phosphorylation. In fact, inhibition of each of these 4 p38 isoforms by the introduction of short hairpin (sh) RNAs for respective isoforms revealed that only shRNA for p38 delta attenuated the UV-induced up-regulation of BRAK/CXCL14 gene expression. In addition, over-expression of p38 isoforms in the cells showed the association of p38 delta with ERK1 and 2, concomitant with down-regulation of ERK phosphorylation. The usage of p38 delta isoform by UV irradiation is not merely due to the abundance of this p38 isoform in the cells. Because serum deprivation of the cells also induced an increase in BRAK/CXCL14 gene expression, and in this case p38 alpha and/or beta isoform is responsible for up-regulation of BRAK/CXCL14 gene expression. Taken together, the data indicate that the respective stress-dependent action of p38 isoforms is responsible for the up-regulation of the gene expression of the chemokine BRAK/CXCL14.