MO25α/β interact with STRADα/β enhancing their ability to bind, activate and localize LKB1 in the cytoplasm

Mutations in the LKB1 protein kinase result in the inherited Peutz Jeghers cancer syndrome. LKB1 has been implicated in regulating cell proliferation and polarity although little is known about how this enzyme is regulated. We recently showed that LKB1 is activated through its interaction with STRADalpha, a catalytically deficient pseudokinase. Here we show that endogenous LKB1-STRADalpha complex is associated with a protein of unknown function, termed MO25alpha, through the interaction of MO25alpha with the last three residues of STRADalpha. MO25alpha and STRADalpha anchor LKB1 in the cytoplasm, excluding it from the nucleus. Moreover, MO25alpha enhances the formation of the LKB1-STRADalpha complex in vivo, stimulating the catalytic activity of LKB1 similar to10-fold. We demonstrate that the related STRADbeta and MO25beta isoforms are also able to stabilize LKB1 in an active complex and that it is possible to isolate complexes of LKB1 bound to STRAD and MO25 isoforms, in which the subunits are present in equimolar amounts. Our results indicate that MO25 may function as a scaffolding component of the LKB1-STRAD complex and plays a crucial role in regulating LKB1 activity and cellular localization.