Vaccinia Related Kinase 3 (VRK3)

VRK3encodes a member of the vaccinia-related kinase (VRK) family of serine/threonine protein kinases. In both human and mouse, this gene has substitutions at several residues within the ATP binding motifs that in other kinases have been shown to be required for catalysis. In vitro assays indicate the protein lacks phosphorylation activity. The protein, however, likely retains its substrate binding capability. This gene is widely expressed in human tissues and its protein localizes to the nucleus. Alternative splicing results in multiple transcripts encoding different isoforms.

VRK3 is expressed in various other rodent tissues and in embryos, and regulates VHR phosphatase activity in these tissues. VHR–VRK3 complex is a phosphatase-active form.