Nuclear Distribution Protein NudE Like Protein 1 (NDEL1)

NDEL1 encodes a thiol-activated peptidase that is phosphorylated in M phase of the cell cycle. Phosphorylation regulates the cell cycle-dependent distribution of this protein, with a fraction of the protein bound strongly to centrosomes in interphase and localized to mitotic spindles in early M phase. Overall, this protein plays a role in nervous system development. Alternate transcriptional splice variants, encoding different isoforms, have been characterized.Overexpression of mouse Lis1 in COS-7 cells caused a redistribution of transfected NUDEL. Biochemical and mutation analyses revealed that NUDEL is phosphorylated on 3 sites by CDK5. Overexpression of a phosphorylation-minus NUDEL mutant or inhibition of CDK5 produced neuritic swellings in rat brain cortical neurons.