Extreme evolutionary conservation of QM, a novel c-Jun associated transcription factor.
QM is a 214 amino acid polypeptide, encoded by a gene (DXS648) in Xq28, that contains a high percentage of charged amino acids and has been found to bind c-Jun and DNA. Searches of the GenBank database revealed no matches between QM and any other known transcription factors. However, we and others have isolated QM homologs from a diverse array of eukaryotes. Alignment of these sequences indicated a high degree of conservation throughout the first 175 residues of the protein and revealed several interesting features. Most notable is the considerable conservation of charged amino acids within specific regions of the protein. Secondary structure analysis suggests that two of these regions form amphipathic alpha-helices, one basic and one acidic. A third conserved charged domain, comprising the N-terminal 30 amino acids, is both basic and proline rich. The rate of sequence divergence of the various homologs was found to be slow (of the order of 1% change every 22 million years), consistent with a critical role for QM in eukaryotic cells. A role for QM as a novel class of transcription regulatory protein is suggested.
Farmer
A A
AA
Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, University of California Irvine, College of Medicine 92715.
Loftus
T M
TM
Mills
A A
AA
Sato
K Y
KY
Neill
J D
JD
Tron
T
T
Yang
M
M
Trumpower
B L
BL
Stanbridge
E J
EJ
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D005075:Biological Evolution; D002874:Chromosome Mapping; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D005057:Eukaryotic Cells / Q000378:metabolism*; D007448:Invertebrates / Q000235:genetics; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D005810:Multigene Family; D009154:Mutation; D010802:Phylogeny; D010944:Plants / Q000235:genetics; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary; D016755:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-jun / Q000378:metabolism*; D000080882:Ribosomal Protein L10; D012269:Ribosomal Proteins; D012441:Saccharomyces cerevisiae / Q000235:genetics; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D013045:Species Specificity; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D025521:Tumor Suppressor Proteins; D014714:Vertebrates / Q000235:genetics; D014960:X Chromosome
D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D016755:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-jun; D012269:Ribosomal Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors; D025521:Tumor Suppressor Proteins