PKU-β/TLK1 regulates myosin II activities, and is required for accurate equaled chromosome segregation

Tousled-like kinase 1 (or protein kinase ubiquitous, PKU-β/TLK1) is a serine/threonine protein kinase that is implicated in chromatin remodeling, DNA replication and mitosis. RNAi-mediated PKU-β/TLK1-depleted human cells showed aneuploidy, and immunofluorescence analysis of these cells revealed the unequal segregation of daughter chromosomes. Immunoblots indicated a substantial reduction in the phosphorylation level of Ser19/Thr18 on the myosin II regulatory light chain (MRLC) in PKU-β/TLK1-depleted cells, with no change in total MRLC protein. To confirm the relationship between mitotic aberration and MRLC dysfunction, we expressed wild type MRLC or DD-MRLC (mimics diphosphorylation; substitution of both Thr18 and Ser19 with aspartate) in PKU-β/TLK1-depleted cells. DD-MRLC expression dramatically reduced the unequal segregation of chromosomes. Our data suggest that human PKU-β/TLK1 plays an important role in chromosome integrity via the regulation of myosin II dynamics by phosphorylating MRLC during mitosis.