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10 sources retrieved · Most recent: April 2026 · Index updated 14 days ago
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PSTK
phosphoseryl-tRNA kinase
Chromosome 10 · 10q26.13
NCBI Gene: 118672Ensembl: ENSG00000179988.15HGNC: HGNC:28578UniProt: H7BYY4
9PubMed Papers
20Diseases
0Drugs
0Pathogenic Variants
FUNCTIONAL ROLE
Kinase
DATA QUALITY
✓ Experimental GO Evidence✓ Swiss-Prot Reviewed
tRNA bindingkinase activityL-seryl-tRNA(Sec) kinase activityneurodegenerative diseasealcohol drinkinghepatocellular carcinomaautism
✦AI Summary

PSTK (phosphoseryl-tRNA kinase) is an essential enzyme that specifically phosphorylates seryl-tRNA(Sec) to O-phosphoseryl-tRNA(Sec), serving as a critical intermediate in selenocysteine biosynthesis 1. This kinase shows high specificity, with no detectable activity toward other tRNAs. PSTK functions within the conserved PSTK-SepSecS pathway, where it works upstream of selenocysteinyl-tRNA synthase to enable selenoprotein synthesis 1. The enzyme's mechanism involves phosphorylation of the seryl moiety on tRNA(Sec), which is subsequently converted to selenocysteine by selenocysteinyl-tRNA synthase using selenophosphate as a selenium donor 1. PSTK demonstrates significant clinical relevance across multiple disease contexts. In hepatocellular carcinoma, PSTK suppresses chemotherapy-induced ferroptosis by maintaining GPX4 activity and glutathione metabolism, contributing to drug resistance 2. Similarly, in acute myeloid leukemia, PSTK inhibition triggers a self-reinforcing loop involving cGAS-STING activation and ROS generation, ultimately leading to ferroptotic death of leukemic stem cells 3. PSTK also shows protective effects against cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity by inhibiting the BAX/BCL2/Caspase3 apoptotic pathway and reducing oxidative stress 4. Additionally, PSTK serves as a potential biomarker for tuberculosis treatment monitoring, with levels increasing during anti-TB therapy 5.

Sources cited
1
PSTK specifically phosphorylates seryl-tRNA(Sec) to O-phosphoseryl-tRNA(Sec) in selenocysteine biosynthesis pathway
PMID: 26586914
2
PSTK suppresses chemotherapy-induced ferroptosis in hepatocellular carcinoma by maintaining GPX4 and glutathione metabolism
PMID: 34983546
3
PSTK inhibition activates cGAS-STING pathway and triggers ferroptotic death in leukemic stem cells
PMID: 39912669
4
PSTK protects against cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity via BAX/BCL2/Caspase3 pathway inhibition
PMID: 39794890
5
PSTK serves as a potential biomarker for tuberculosis treatment monitoring
PMID: 32298370
Disease Associationsⓘ20
neurodegenerative diseaseOpen Targets
0.50Moderate
alcohol drinkingOpen Targets
0.27Weak
hepatocellular carcinomaOpen Targets
0.08Suggestive
autismOpen Targets
0.05Suggestive
intellectual disability, autosomal dominant 50Open Targets
0.04Suggestive
chorea, childhood-onset, with psychomotor retardationOpen Targets
0.04Suggestive
autism spectrum disorderOpen Targets
0.03Suggestive
neoplasmOpen Targets
0.03Suggestive
Townes-Brocks syndromeOpen Targets
0.01Suggestive
infectionOpen Targets
0.01Suggestive
cancerOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
acute myeloid leukemiaOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
acute kidney injuryOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
colorectal carcinomaOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
serum lipopolysaccharide activityOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
cervical cancerOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
colorectal adenocarcinomaOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
lung cancerOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
melanomaOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
ThymomaOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
Pathogenic Variants
No pathogenic variants reported on ClinVar for this gene.
View on ClinVar ↗
Related Genes
SARS1Protein interaction99%SEPHS2Protein interaction99%SEPHS1Protein interaction99%SEPSECSProtein interaction99%SARS2Protein interaction99%TRNAU1APProtein interaction99%
Tissue Expression6 tissues
Bone Marrow
100%
Liver
22%
Brain
19%
Ovary
17%
Lung
9%
Heart
8%
Gene Interaction Network
Click a node to explore
PSTKSARS1SEPHS2SEPHS1SEPSECSSARS2TRNAU1AP
PROTEIN STRUCTURE
Preparing viewer…
AlphaFoldAI-predicted · UniProt Q8IV42
View on AlphaFold ↗
Constraintⓘ
LOEUFⓘ
0.79LoF Tolerant
pLIⓘ
0.04Tolerant
Observed/Expected LoF0.49 [0.31–0.79]
RankingsWhere PSTK stands among ~20K protein-coding genes
  • #17,424of 20,598
    Most Researched9
  • #6,493of 17,882
    Most Constrained (LOEUF)0.79
Genes detectedPSTK
Sources retrieved10 papers
Response time—
📄 Sources
10▼
1
CRISPR screens uncover protective effect of PSTK as a regulator of chemotherapy-induced ferroptosis in hepatocellular carcinoma.
PMID: 34983546
Mol Cancer · 2022
1.00
2
PSTK inhibition activates cGAS-STING, precipitating ferroptotic cell death in leukemic stem cells.
PMID: 39912669
Blood · 2025
0.90
3
Same but different - Molecular comparison of human KTI12 and PSTK.
PMID: 33417976
Biochim Biophys Acta Mol Cell Res · 2021
0.80
4
Proteomic analysis of infected primary human leucocytes revealed PSTK as potential treatment-monitoring marker for active and latent tuberculosis.
PMID: 32298370
PLoS One · 2020
0.70
5
Differential expression profile analysis of PSTK-regulated mRNAs in podocytes.
PMID: 28419530
J Cell Biochem · 2019
0.60