Reversible phosphorylation is one of the major mechanisms by which protein activity is controlled in all eukaryotic cells. Networks of protein kinases and phosphatases, which catalyse phosphorylation and dephosphorylation, respectively, are responsible for switching between different pathways of cell division, development, or differentiation in response to hormones or growth factors.

This book provides a comprehensive description of current methods for studying protein phosphorylation and the protein kinases and phosphatases which catalyse it. It includes detailed protocols for studying phosphorylation in intact cells, approaches using enzyme inhibitors, purification of serine- and threonine-specific protein kinases and phosphatases, analysis of kinase and phosphatase specificity, and cloning relevant cDNAs.

1. Protein Phosphorylation: A Practical Approach will be of great value to all researchers in the fields of intracellular and intercellular signalling, including biochemists, molecular biologists, and pharmacologists.