N-acetyltransferase 2 (arylamine N-acetyltransferase), also known as NAT2, is an
enzyme
An enzyme () is a protein that acts as a biological catalyst by accelerating chemical reactions. The molecules upon which enzymes may act are called substrate (chemistry), substrates, and the enzyme converts the substrates into different mol ...
which in humans is encoded by the ''NAT2''
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
This gene encodes a type of
N-acetyltransferase. The NAT2
isozyme
In biochemistry, isozymes (also known as isoenzymes or more generally as multiple forms of enzymes) are enzymes that differ in amino acid sequence but catalyze the same chemical reaction. Isozymes usually have different kinetic parameters (e.g. di ...
functions to both activate and deactivate arylamine and
hydrazine
Hydrazine is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula . It is a simple pnictogen hydride, and is a colourless flammable liquid with an ammonia-like odour. Hydrazine is highly hazardous unless handled in solution as, for example, hydraz ...
drugs and carcinogens. Polymorphisms in this gene are responsible for the N-acetylation polymorphism in which human populations segregate into rapid, intermediate, and slow
acetylator phenotype
In genetics, the phenotype () is the set of observable characteristics or traits of an organism. The term covers the organism's morphology (physical form and structure), its developmental processes, its biochemical and physiological propert ...
s. Polymorphisms in NAT2 are also associated with higher incidences of cancer and drug toxicity. A second arylamine N-acetyltransferase gene (
NAT1) is located near NAT2.
Phenotype prediction
The NAT2 acetylator phenotype can be inferred from NAT2 genotype (a combination of
SNPs observed in a given individual).
References
Further reading
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External links
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The Arylamine N-acetyltransferase Gene Nomenclature Committee homepagePDBe-KBprovides an overview of all the structure information available in the PDB for Human Arylamine N-acetyltransferase 2
Human proteins
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