title: MCL1, a gene expressed in programmed myeloid cell differentiation, has sequence similarity to BCL2.
abstract: During their lifespan, immature cells normally pass through sequential transitions to a differentiated state and eventually undergo cell death. This progression is aberrant in cancer, although the transition to differentiation can be reestablished in inducible leukemia cell lines. This report describes a gene, MCL1, that we isolated from the ML-1 human myeloid leukemia cell line during phorbol ester-induced differentiation along the monocyte/macrophage pathway. Our results demonstrate that expression of MCL1 increases early in the induction, or "programming," of differentiation in ML-1 (at 1-3 hr), before the appearance of differentiation markers and mature morphology (at 1-3 days). They further show that MCL1 has sequence similarity to BCL2, a gene involved in normal lymphoid development and in lymphomas with the t(14;18) chromosome translocation. MCL1 and BCL2 do not fall into previously known gene families. BCL2 differs from many oncogenes in that it inhibits programmed cell death, promoting viability rather than proliferation; this parallels the association of MCL1 with the programming of differentiation and concomitant maintenance of viability but not proliferation. Thus, in contrast to proliferation-associated genes, expression of MCL1 and BCL2 relates to the programming of differentiation and cell viability/death. The discovery of MCL1 broadens our perspective on an emerging MCL1/BCL2 gene family and will allow further comparison with oncogene families.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205.
authors.forename: K M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Kozopas
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: H L
authors.initials: HL
authors.lastname: Buchan
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: R W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Craig
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001483:Base Sequence; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics*; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D004273:DNA, Neoplasm / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D015870:Gene Expression / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D007700:Kinetics; D007951:Leukemia, Myeloid; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D064549:Myeloid Cell Leukemia Sequence 1 Protein; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D011061:Poly A / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D011505:Protein-Tyrosine Kinases / Q000235:genetics; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2; D011519:Proto-Oncogenes; D012313:RNA / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D013755:Tetradecanoylphorbol Acetate / Q000494:pharmacology; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured
chemical_list: D004273:DNA, Neoplasm; D064549:Myeloid Cell Leukemia Sequence 1 Protein; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D011061:Poly A; D012313:RNA; D011505:Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; D013755:Tetradecanoylphorbol Acetate