F-box/WD repeat-containing protein 4 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 ''FBXW4''

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 ...

. This gene is a member of the F-box/WD-40 gene family, which recruit specific target proteins through their WD-40 protein-protein binding domains for

ubiquitin Ubiquitin is a small (8.6 kDa) regulatory protein found in most tissues of eukaryotic organisms, i.e., it is found ''ubiquitously''. It was discovered in 1975 by Gideon Goldstein and further characterized throughout the late 1970s and 19 ...

mediated degradation. In mouse, a highly similar protein is thought to be responsible for maintaining the apical ectodermal ridge of developing limb buds; disruption of the mouse gene results in the absence of central digits, underdeveloped or absent metacarpal/metatarsal bones and

syndactyly Syndactyly is a condition wherein two or more digits are fused together. It occurs normally in some mammals, but is an unusual condition in humans. The term is . Classification Syndactyly can be simple or complex. * In simple syndactyly, adja ...

. This phenotype is remarkably similar to split hand-split foot malformation in humans, a clinically heterogeneous condition with a variety of modes of transmission. An autosomal recessive form has been mapped to the chromosomal region where this gene is located, and complex rearrangements involving duplications of this gene and others have been associated with the condition. A pseudogene of this locus has been mapped to one of the

intron An intron is any nucleotide sequence within a gene that is not expressed or operative in the final RNA product. The word ''intron'' is derived from the term ''intragenic region'', i.e., a region inside a gene."The notion of the cistron .e., gen ...

s of the BCR gene on chromosome 22.

References

Further reading