一个新C2H2型锌指蛋白的功能的初步研究

通过筛选人18周胎脑cDNA文库，得到一条编码332AA的全长新基因，生物信息学研究表明，该蛋白质序列有2个C2H2型锌指结构，其中1个锌指结构有RNA－binding蛋白特异锌指的特征，虽然同源比较发现与多种蛋白质精氨酸N端转甲基酶（protein arginine N-methyltransferase) 有一定的同源性，但新锌指蛋白不含转甲基酶的活性功能区域，属功能未知的基因，利用芯片研究功能未知基因的表达是一种较好的手段，通过代谢增强剂PMA（phorbol myristae acetate)刺激培养的血管内皮细胞，观察细胞受激活后新锌指蛋白基因的表达变化，结果表明新基因表达量提高了11倍以上，证实新基因属内皮细胞的极早期应答基因（Immediate early response gene,ERG)。

Cloning and Preliminary Characterization of a Novel C2H2 Zinc Finger Gene(Znf)

Through screening a fetal brain cDNA library, a cDNA coding a protein of 332AA was isolated. The protein sequence was searched against prosite library, two C 2H 2 zinc finger motifs were found. The first motif was like a Zn finger (C 2H 2) in RNA binding proteins. Also the protein was homologous to some of the protein arginine N methyltransferases (PRMT) through BLASTp against nr database of the NCBI, it contained no SAM(S Adenosyl L methionine) binding motif which was partial catalytic domain of the PRMT. The function of the novel C 2H 2 zinc finger protein was unknown. In this study, the cDNA microarray was used to check the expression change of the gene in human blood vascular endothelials, which treated with PMA for 6 hours. Interestingly, its expression increased 11 times. This result indicated that the novel C 2H 2 zinc finger gene was one of the immediate early response genes( ERG ) in endothelials.