NLK

Serine/threonine protein kinase NLK is an is_associated_with::enzyme that in humans is encoded by the NLK is_associated_with::gene. Its name is an abbreviation for Nemo-Like Kinase, Nemo (nmo) being the Drosophila is_associated_with::ortholog of the mammalian NLK gene. This enzyme is a member of the is_associated_with::Mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) family, although not explicitly designated as such (it does not even have a numbered MAPK code). It is a highly divergent, atypical member of the MAPK group, lacking most features so characteristic of most mitogen-activated protein kinases (e.g. it does not have the dual is_associated_with::phosphorylation motifs of typical MAPKs, and is not phosphorylated by any known MAP2 kinases). Its activation mechanism and downstream targets are still not well characterized.