Polycomb group RING finger protein 2, PCGF2, also known as MEL18 or RNF110, is a

protein Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residue (biochemistry), residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including Enzyme catalysis, catalysing metab ...

that in humans is encoded by the ''PCGF2''

gene In biology, the word gene has two meanings. The Mendelian gene is a basic unit of heredity. The molecular gene is a sequence of nucleotides in DNA that is transcribed to produce a functional RNA. There are two types of molecular genes: protei ...

Function

The protein encoded by this gene contains a

RING finger The ring finger, third finger, fourth finger, leech finger, or annulary is the fourth digit of the human hand, located between the middle finger and the little finger. Sometimes the term ring finger only refers to the fourth digit of a left-ha ...

motif. PCGF2 is a component of the canonical PRC1 complex composed of RING1A/B, CBX2/CBX4, polyhomeotic ( PHC) proteins and is very similar to the PCGF4/

BMI1 Polycomb complex protein BMI-1 also known as polycomb group RING finger protein 4 (PCGF4) or RING finger protein 51 (RNF51) is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ''BMI1'' gene (B cell-specific Moloney murine leukemia virus integration s ...

containing PRC1. Canonical PRC1 binds to chromatin via the

chromodomain Overview Chromodomains are evolutionarily conserved protein domains found across a wide variety of eukaryotic species. Some chromodomain-containing genes have multiple alternative splicing isoforms that omit the chromodomain entirely. They are p ...

of the CBX subunit that recognizes the

H3K27me3 H3K27me3 is an epigenetic modification to the DNA packaging protein histone H3. It is a mark that indicates the tri-methylation of lysine 27 on histone H3 protein. This tri-methylation is associated with the Downregulation and upregulation, down ...

mark deposited by

PRC2 PRC2 (polycomb repressive complex 2) is one of the two classes of polycomb-group proteins or (PcG). The other component of this group of proteins is PRC1 ( Polycomb Repressive Complex 1). This complex has histone methyltransferase activity and ...

. Canonical PRC1 complexes have been shown to compact chromatin and mediate higher-order chromatin structures. Polycomb complexes maintain the transcription repression of genes involved in

embryogenesis An embryo ( ) is the initial stage of development for a multicellular organism. In organisms that reproduce sexually, embryonic development is the part of the life cycle that begins just after fertilization of the female egg cell by the male ...

, cell cycles, and

tumorigenesis Carcinogenesis, also called oncogenesis or tumorigenesis, is the formation of a cancer, whereby normal cells are transformed into cancer cells. The process is characterized by changes at the cellular, genetic, and epigenetic levels and abn ...

. PCGF2 was shown to act as a negative regulator of transcription and has

tumor suppressor A tumor suppressor gene (TSG), or anti-oncogene, is a gene that regulates a cell (biology), cell during cell division and replication. If the cell grows uncontrollably, it will result in cancer. When a tumor suppressor gene is mutated, it results ...

activity. The expression of this gene was detected in various tumor cells, but is limited in neural organs in normal tissues. Knockout studies in mice suggested that this protein may negatively regulate the expression of different

cytokine Cytokines () are a broad and loose category of small proteins (~5–25 kDa) important in cell signaling. Cytokines are produced by a broad range of cells, including immune cells like macrophages, B cell, B lymphocytes, T cell, T lymphocytes ...

chemokine Chemokines (), or chemotactic cytokines, are a family of small cytokines or signaling proteins secreted by cells that induce directional movement of leukocytes, as well as other cell types, including endothelial and epithelial cells. In addit ...

s, and

chemokine receptor Chemokine receptors are cytokine receptors found on the surface of certain cells that interact with a type of cytokine called a chemokine. There have been 20 distinct chemokine receptors discovered in humans. Each has a rhodopsin-like 7-tran ...

s, and thus plays an important role in

lymphocyte A lymphocyte is a type of white blood cell (leukocyte) in the immune system of most vertebrates. Lymphocytes include T cells (for cell-mediated and cytotoxic adaptive immunity), B cells (for humoral, antibody-driven adaptive immunity), an ...

differentiation and migration, as well as in immune responses.

Function

References

Further reading