Numerous studies, published over many years, have established the key role that the IκB kinase (IKK) subunits, α and β, play in regulating the Nuclear Factor κB (NF-κB) pathway. This research generally concluded that their functions can be separated, with IKKβ being the critical regulator of the canonical NF-κB pathway, while IKKα functions as the key activating kinase for the non-canonical pathway. However, other roles for these kinases have been described and several reports concluded that this separation of their functions may not always be the case. This commentary discusses the recent report by Biochem J. 479, 305–325, who elegantly demonstrate that in KRAS driven colorectal cancer cell lines, IKKα is an important regulator of the canonical NF-κB pathway. As is so often the case with trying to understand the complexity of NF-κB signalling, cellular context is everything.

中文翻译：

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Alphabetti 激酶 Spaghetti：IKKα 和 β 在经典 NF-κB 通路中的复杂作用


多年来发表的大量研究已经确定了 IκB 激酶 (IKK) 亚基 α 和 β 在调节核因子 κB (NF-κB) 通路中发挥的关键作用。这项研究总体上得出结论，它们的功能可以分开，IKKβ 是经典 NF-κB 通路的关键调节因子，而 IKKα 则作为非经典通路的关键激活激酶。然而，这些激酶的其他作用已经被描述，并且一些报告得出结论，它们的功能分离可能并不总是如此。本评论讨论了 Biochem J. 479, 305–325 最近的报告，该报告优雅地证明了在 KRAS 驱动的结直肠癌细胞系中，IKKα 是经典 NF-κB 通路的重要调节因子。正如试图了解 NF-κB 信号传导的复杂性时经常发生的情况一样，细胞环境就是一切。