TRANSCRIPTION FACTORS AND CANCER. THE EXAMPLE OF PAX GENES.
Pax genes encode for transcription factors important in cell differentiation and embryonic development. These genes are very much conserved in vertebrates and homologous genes are also present in lower eukaryotics. Pax genes are defined by the presence of the paired box, a sequence encoding for a protein domain able of sequence-specific DNA recognition. Full-length Pax protein control a large variety of developmental decisions. Mutations of Pax genes give rise to abnormal phenotypes both in human and mouse. Recently, various studies have revealed the role that Pax genes may have in human tumours. Both "in vitro" and "in vivo" assays demonstrate that these genes possess an oncogenic potential. Moreover, misexpression or structural alterations of these genes have been detected in several human tumours. Together with studies that have revealed the critical biochemical and biological properties of Pax proteins, in this review we focus on their relevance in human cancer and, in particular, on target genes that may mediate their biological effects. A systematic identification of genes which are targets of Pax proteins may have a great impact in understanding molecular basis of neoplastic disease.
Tell
G
Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Biomediche, University of Udine, Udine, 33100, Italy.
Pellizzari
L
Damante
G