FEZ-like protein

Last updated
FEZ-like protein
Identifiers
SymbolFEZ
Pfam PF07763
InterPro IPR011680

In molecular biology, the FEZ-like protein family is a family of eukaryotic proteins thought to be involved in axonal outgrowth and fasciculation. [1] The N-terminal regions of these sequences are less conserved than the C-terminal regions, and are highly acidic. [1] The Caenorhabditis elegans homologue, UNC-76, may play structural and signalling roles in the control of axonal extension and adhesion (particularly in the presence of adjacent neuronal cells [2] ) and these roles have also been postulated for other FEZ family proteins. [1] Certain homologues have been definitively found to interact with the N-terminal variable region (V1) of PKC-zeta, and this interaction causes cytoplasmic translocation of the FEZ family protein in mammalian neuronal cells. [2] The C-terminal region probably participates in the association with the regulatory domain of PKC-zeta. [2] The members of this family are predicted to form coiled-coil structures [2] [3] which may interact with members of the RhoA family of signalling proteins, [2] but are not thought to contain other characteristic protein motifs. [3] Certain members of this family are expressed almost exclusively in the brain, whereas others (such as FEZ2) are expressed in other tissues, and are thought to perform similar but unknown functions in these tissues. [3]

Related Research Articles

Internexin, alpha-internexin, is a Class IV intermediate filament approximately 66 KDa. The protein was originally purified from rat optic nerve and spinal cord. The protein copurifies with other neurofilament subunits, as it was originally discovered, however in some mature neurons it can be the only neurofilament expressed. The protein is present in developing neuroblasts and in the Central Nervous System of adults. The protein is a major component of the intermediate filament network in small interneurons and cerebellar granule cells, where it is present in the parallel fibers.

Netrin Class of proteins involved in axon guidance

Netrins are a class of proteins involved in axon guidance. They are named after the Sanskrit word "netr", which means "one who guides". Netrins are genetically conserved across nematode worms, fruit flies, frogs, mice, and humans. Structurally, netrin resembles the extracellular matrix protein laminin.

Spectrin

Spectrin is a cytoskeletal protein that lines the intracellular side of the plasma membrane in eukaryotic cells. Spectrin forms pentagonal or hexagonal arrangements, forming a scaffold and playing an important role in maintenance of plasma membrane integrity and cytoskeletal structure. The hexagonal arrangements are formed by tetramers of spectrin subunits associating with short actin filaments at either end of the tetramer. These short actin filaments act as junctional complexes allowing the formation of the hexagonal mesh. The protein is named spectrin since it was first isolated as a major protein component of human red blood cells which had been treated with mild detergents; the detergents lysed the cells and the hemoglobin and other cytoplasmic components were washed out. In the light microscope the basic shape of the red blood cell could still be seen as the spectrin-containing submembranous cytoskeleton preserved the shape of the cell in outline. This became known as a red blood cell "ghost" (spectre), and so the major protein of the ghost was named spectrin.

Katanin is a microtubule-severing AAA protein. It is named after the Japanese sword, katana. Katanin is a heterodimeric protein first discovered in sea urchins. It contains a 60 kDa ATPase subunit, encoded by KATNA1, which functions to sever microtubules. This subunit requires ATP and the presence of microtubules for activation. The second 80 kDA subunit, encoded by KATNB1, regulates the activity of the ATPase and localizes the protein to centrosomes. Electron microscopy shows that katanin forms 14–16 nm rings in its active oligomerized state on the walls of microtubules.

CCAAT-enhancer-binding proteins

CCAAT-enhancer-binding proteins is a family of transcription factors composed of six members, named from C/EBPα to C/EBPζ. They promote the expression of certain genes through interaction with their promoters. Once bound to DNA, C/EBPs can recruit so-called co-activators that in turn can open up chromatin structure or recruit basal transcription factors.

Teneurins are a family of phylogenetically conserved single-pass transmembrane glycoproteins expressed during pattern formation and morphogenesis. The name refers to "ten-a" and "neurons", the primary site of teneurin expression. Ten-m refers to tenascin-like protein major.

Protein kinase C zeta type

Protein kinase C, zeta (PKCζ), also known as PRKCZ, is a protein in humans that is encoded by the PRKCZ gene. The PRKCZ gene encodes at least two alternative transcripts, the full-length PKCζ and an N-terminal truncated form PKMζ. PKMζ is thought to be responsible for maintaining long-term memories in the brain. The importance of PKCζ in the creation and maintenance of long-term potentiation was first described by Todd Sacktor and his colleagues at the State University of New York at Brooklyn in 1993.

DISC1

Disrupted in schizophrenia 1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the DISC1 gene. In coordination with a wide array of interacting partners, DISC1 has been shown to participate in the regulation of cell proliferation, differentiation, migration, neuronal axon and dendrite outgrowth, mitochondrial transport, fission and/or fusion, and cell-to-cell adhesion. Several studies have shown that unregulated expression or altered protein structure of DISC1 may predispose individuals to the development of schizophrenia, clinical depression, bipolar disorder, and other psychiatric conditions. The cellular functions that are disrupted by permutations in DISC1, which lead to the development of these disorders, have yet to be clearly defined and are the subject of current ongoing research. Although, recent genetic studies of large schizophrenia cohorts have failed to implicate DISC1 as a risk gene at the gene level, the DISC1 interactome gene set was associated with schizophrenia, showing evidence from genome-wide association studies of the role of DISC1 and interacting partners in schizophrenia susceptibility.

PARD6A

Partitioning defective 6 homolog alpha is a protein that in humans is encoded by the PARD6A gene.

FEZ1

Fasciculation and elongation protein zeta-1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the FEZ1 gene.

PARD6B

Partitioning defective 6 homolog beta is a protein that in humans is encoded by the PARD6B gene.

FEZ2

Fasciculation and elongation protein zeta-2 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the FEZ2 gene.

Coronin is an actin binding protein which also interacts with microtubules and in some cell types is associated with phagocytosis. Coronin proteins are expressed in a large number of eukaryotic organisms from yeast to humans.

NAV1

Neuron navigator 1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the NAV1 gene.

Munc-18 proteins are the mammalian homologue of UNC-18 and are a member of the Sec1/Munc18-like (SM) protein family. Munc-18 proteins have been identified as essential components of the synaptic vesicle fusion protein complex and are crucial for the regulated exocytosis of neurons and neuroendocrine cells.

AuTophaGy related 1 (Atg1) is a 101.7kDa serine/threonine kinase in S.cerevisiae, encoded by the gene ATG1. It is essential for the initial building of the autophagosome and Cvt vesicles. In a non-kinase role it is - through complex formation with Atg13 and Atg17 - directly controlled by the TOR kinase, a sensor for nutrient availability.

NeuN

NeuN , a protein which is a homologue to the protein product of a sex-determining gene in Caenorhabditis elegans, is a neuronal nuclear antigen that is commonly used as a biomarker for neurons.

UNC is a set of proteins first identified through a set of screening tests in Caenorhabditis elegans, looking for roundworms with movement problems. Worms with which were un-coordinated were analysed in order to identify the genetic defect. Such proteins include UNC-5, a receptor for UNC-6 which is one of the netrins. Netrins are a class of proteins involved in axon guidance. UNC-5 uses repulsion (genetics) to direct axons while the other netrin receptor UNC-40 attracts axons to the source of netrin production.

UNC-5 is a receptor for netrins including UNC-6. Netrins are a class of proteins involved in axon guidance. UNC-5 uses repulsion to direct axons while the other netrin receptor UNC-40 attracts axons to the source of netrin production.

Shigeo Ohno is a Japanese molecular biologist known for his pioneer research on Protein Kinase C (PKC) and Cell Polarity. His works led to the fundamental understanding of cell polarity in response to cell signaling.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Bloom L, Horvitz HR (April 1997). "The Caenorhabditis elegans gene unc-76 and its human homologs define a new gene family involved in axonal outgrowth and fasciculation". Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 94 (7): 3414–9. Bibcode:1997PNAS...94.3414B. doi:10.1073/pnas.94.7.3414. PMC   20384 . PMID   9096408.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Kuroda S, Nakagawa N, Tokunaga C, Tatematsu K, Tanizawa K (February 1999). "Mammalian homologue of the Caenorhabditis elegans UNC-76 protein involved in axonal outgrowth is a protein kinase C zeta-interacting protein". J. Cell Biol. 144 (3): 403–11. doi:10.1083/jcb.144.3.403. PMC   2132904 . PMID   9971736.
  3. 1 2 3 Fujita T, Ikuta J, Hamada J, Okajima T, Tatematsu K, Tanizawa K, Kuroda S (January 2004). "Identification of a tissue-non-specific homologue of axonal fasciculation and elongation protein zeta-1". Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 313 (3): 738–44. doi:10.1016/j.bbrc.2003.12.006. PMID   14697253.
This article incorporates text from the public domain Pfam and InterPro: IPR011680