Activation of c‐Jun amino‐terminal kinase is required for retinoic acid‐induced neural differentiation of P19 embryonal carcinoma cells

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Abstract
P19 embryonal carcinoma cells are known to differentiate into neurons and glia when treated with relatively high concentrations (>100 nM) of retinoic acid (RA). Concomitant with this RA‐induced neural differentiation, we observed an activation of the c‐Jun amino‐terminal kinase (JNK). JNK was required for the RA‐induced neural differentiation, because dominant‐negative JNK blocked the differentiation. Studies using protein phosphatase inhibitors and protein kinase inhibitors suggested that both okadaic acid‐sensitive protein phosphatase(s) and protein kinase C participate in the RA‐induced activation of JNK.