A highly conserved novel family of mammalian developmental transcription factors related to Drosophila grainyhead

Mech Dev. 2002 Jun;114(1-2):37-50. doi: 10.1016/s0925-4773(02)00046-1.

Abstract

The Drosophila transcription factor Grainyhead regulates several key developmental processes. Three mammalian genes, CP2, LBP-1a and LBP-9 have been previously identified as homologues of grainyhead. We now report the cloning of two new mammalian genes (Mammalian grainyhead (MGR) and Brother-of-MGR (BOM)) and one new Drosophila gene (dCP2) that rewrite the phylogeny of this family. We demonstrate that MGR and BOM are more closely related to grh, whereas CP2, LBP-1a and LBP-9 are descendants of the dCP2 gene. MGR shares the greatest sequence homology with grh, is expressed in tissue-restricted patterns more comparable to grh and binds to and transactivates the promoter of the human Engrailed-1 gene, the mammalian homologue of the key grainyhead target gene, engrailed. This sequence and functional conservation indicates that the new mammalian members of this family play important developmental roles.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Animals
  • Base Sequence
  • Binding Sites
  • Cloning, Molecular
  • DNA / metabolism
  • DNA-Binding Proteins / metabolism*
  • Dimerization
  • Drosophila
  • Drosophila Proteins
  • Embryo, Mammalian / pathology
  • Embryo, Nonmammalian
  • Evolution, Molecular
  • Exons
  • Homeodomain Proteins / metabolism
  • Humans
  • In Situ Hybridization
  • Mice
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Nuclear Proteins
  • Phylogeny
  • Polymerase Chain Reaction
  • Protein Binding
  • Protein Isoforms
  • Protein Structure, Tertiary
  • Repressor Proteins*
  • Sequence Homology, Amino Acid
  • Tissue Distribution
  • Transcription Factors / biosynthesis
  • Transcription Factors / metabolism*
  • Transcription, Genetic
  • Transcriptional Activation

Substances

  • DNA-Binding Proteins
  • Drosophila Proteins
  • ELF1 protein, human
  • EN1 protein, human
  • Elf1 protein, mouse
  • En1 protein, mouse
  • GRHL2 protein, human
  • Homeodomain Proteins
  • Lcp2 protein, Drosophila
  • Nuclear Proteins
  • Protein Isoforms
  • Repressor Proteins
  • TFCP2L1 protein, human
  • Tfcp2l1 protein, mouse
  • Transcription Factors
  • UBP1 protein, human
  • grh protein, Drosophila
  • DNA