Meta-Biol

• Pathways

DVL proteins from Drosophila, Xenopus, mouse and human cells have been shown to be phosphorylated, however the role of phosphorylation remains incompletely understood (Willert et al, 1997; Semenov and Synder, 1997; Yanagawa et al, 1995; Rothbächer et al, 2000). CSNK2 was identified as a DVL-associated kinase in Drosophila cells, and was shown to mediate the phosphorylation of serine and threonine residues in vitro (Willert et al, 1997). CSNK2-mediated phosphorylation of DVL may be constitutive, as DVL exists as a phosphoprotein even in the absence of WNT signaling (Bernatik et al, 2011). The association between DVL and CSNK2 may be enhanced upon WNT signaling, leading to increased levels of DVL phosphorylation (Willert et al, 2007).