kinasedependent

Kinase-dependent refers to biological processes, molecular functions, or cellular activities that require the action of protein kinases to proceed or be regulated. Protein kinases are enzymes that transfer a phosphate group from ATP to specific amino acid residues—primarily serine, threonine, or tyrosine—on target proteins. Phosphorylation can alter a substrate's activity, stability, subcellular localization, or interactions, thereby enabling signal transduction, cell cycle control, metabolism, and other essential processes. In kinase-dependent signaling pathways, a signal triggers activation of one kinase, which then activates downstream kinases in a cascade, amplifying the response. Common examples include the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway, the PI3K-AKT-mTOR pathway, and cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) networks that regulate cell division.

Kinase activity is tightly regulated by phosphorylation of the kinases themselves, allosteric modulators, localization, and scaffold proteins that bring components together. In many diseases, especially cancer, inappropriate kinase activity is a driving factor; accordingly, kinase inhibitors form a major class of targeted therapies. Researchers also distinguish kinase-dependent from kinase-independent functions for some proteins, noting that certain proteins may exert biological effects even when their catalytic kinase activity is absent or inhibited.

The term kinase-dependent is used broadly to describe any process that depends on phosphorylation events mediated by kinases, distinguishing it from mechanisms that proceed without kinase action or rely on non-kinase enzymes.