SHP2 and cbl participate in α-chemokine receptor CXCR4–mediated signaling pathways

Stromal cell–derived factor (SDF)-1α and its receptor, CXCR4, play an important role in cell migration, embryonic development, and human immunodeficiency virus infection. However, the cellular signaling pathways that mediate these processes are not fully elucidated. We and others have shown that the binding of SDF-1α to CXCR4 activates phosphatidylinositol-3 kinase (PI-3 kinase), p44/42 mitogen-associated protein kinase, and the transcription factor nuclear factor–κB, and it also enhances the tyrosine phosphorylation and association of proteins involved in the formation of focal adhesions. In this study, we examined the role of phosphatases in CXCR4-mediated signaling pathways. We observed significant inhibition of SDF-1α–induced migration by phosphatase inhibitors in CXCR4-transfected pre-B lymphoma L1.2 cells, Jurkat T cells, and peripheral blood lymphocytes. Further studies revealed that SDF-1α stimulation induced robust tyrosine phosphorylation in the SH2-containing phosphatase SHP2. SHP2 associated with the CXCR4 receptor and the signaling molecules SHIP, cbl, and fyn. Overexpression of wild-type SHP2 increased SDF-1α–induced chemotaxis. Enhanced activation of fyn and lyn kinases and the tyrosine phosphorylation of cbl were also observed. In addition, SDF-1α stimulation enhanced the association of cbl with PI-3 kinase, Crk-L, and 14-3-3β proteins. Our results suggest that CXCR4-mediated signaling is regulated by SHP2 and cbl, which collectively participate in the formation of a multimeric signaling complex.