Phosphoinositide 3-kinases (PI3Ks) are lipid kinases which also possess an in vitro protein kinase activity towards themselves or their adaptor proteins. The physiological relevance of these phosphorylations is unclear at present. Here, the protein kinase activity of the tyrosine kinase-linked PI3K, p110δ, is characterized and its functional impact assessed. In vitro autophosphorylation of p110δ completely down-regulates its lipid kinase activity. The single site of autophosphorylation was mapped to Ser1039 at the C-terminus of p110δ. Antisera specific for phospho-Ser1039 revealed a very low level of phosphorylation of this residue in cell lines. However, p110δ that is recruited to activated receptors (such as CD28 in T cells) shows a timedependent increase in Ser1039 phosphorylation and a concomitant decrease in associated lipid kinase activity. Treatment of cells with okadaic acid, an inhibitor of Ser/Thr phosphatases, also dramatically increases the level of Ser1039-phosphorylated p110δ. LY294002 and wortmannin blocked these in vivo increases in Ser1039 phosphorylation, consistent with the notion that PI3Ks, and possibly p110δ itself, are involved in the in vivo phosphorylation of p110δ. In summary, we show that PI3Ks are subject to regulatory phosphorylations in vivo similar to those identified under in vitro conditions, identifying a new level of control of these signalling molecules.

Interleukin-12 (IL-12) is a heterodimeric cytokine composed of p35 and p40 subunits and is required for induction of T helper 1 (Th1) responses. Knowledge of how the IL-12 gene is regulated will permit an understanding of susceptibility and resistance to pathogenic microbes and to autoiummune diseases. In this report, we provide the gene structures, nucleotide sequences and chromosomal assignment for the p35 and p40 subunits of mouse IL-12. The p35 and p40 subunit genes are distributed over 8 kb and 14 kb, and map to chromosomes 3 and 11, respectively. The p35 subunit gene consists of eight exons, including a 5'-noncoding exon that was defined by sequence comparison of genomic DNA with the 5'ends of novel cDNA molecules. Transcription of p35 mRNA can start from the first exon but can also initiate further downstream. Potential transcription regulatory elements, AP1, AP2, AP3, NF-kB and GATA recognition sequences, are located within 523 bp upstream of the p35 gene; however, no TATA box was identified. The p40 subunit gene consists of eight exons. A TATA box is located 30 bp upstream from the transcription start site, and AP1, AP3, GATA, and Pu.1 recognition sequences are located within 690 bp upstream of the p40 gene. An AGTTTCTACTTT sequence, which acts as an interferon-gamma response element in the promoter of the major histocompatibility complex class I gene, was also found upstream of the p40 gene.

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