The Haspin gene: location in an intron of the integrin alphaE gene, associated transcription of an integrin alphaE-derived RNA and expression in diploid as well as haploid cells.
Haspin is a serine/threonine kinase, recently identified in mice, that is thought to regulate cell cycle and differentiation of haploid germ cells. Here, the haspin gene is identified within an intron of the integrin alphaE gene. Transcription occurs from a bi-directional CpG island-associated promoter that also generates an alternatively spliced integrin alphaE derived RNA. Remarkably, the human and murine haspin genes lack introns, and have features of retroposons. The human haspin cDNA reveals that the human and murine proteins are 83% identical in the C-terminal kinase domain, but only 53% identical in the N-terminal region. The haspin kinase domain has structural features that distinguish it from previously characterized proteins and suggest that haspin is a member of a new family of protein kinases. Although formerly thought to be expressed selectively in the testes, haspin is also transcribed at lower levels in thymus, bone marrow, fetal liver and other fetal tissues, and in all proliferating cell lines tested. Thus haspin is likely to be important in regulation of diploid as well as haploid cell differentiation in a variety of tissues.
Higgins
J M
JM
Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Smith Building, Room 538D, One Jimmy Fund Way, Boston, MA 02115, USA. jhiggins@rics.bwh.harvard.edu
D017398:Alternative Splicing; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D015703:Antigens, CD / Q000235:genetics*; D001483:Base Sequence; D015152:Blotting, Northern; D002460:Cell Line; D004247:DNA / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D018076:DNA, Complementary / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D004171:Diploidy; D005260:Female; D015870:Gene Expression; D006238:Haploidy; D006801:Humans; D039001:Integrin alpha Chains; D047908:Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; D007438:Introns / Q000235:genetics*; D019169:Jurkat Cells; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D012313:RNA / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D012689:Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid; D014018:Tissue Distribution; D014158:Transcription, Genetic
D015703:Antigens, CD; D018076:DNA, Complementary; C530657:Haspin protein, mouse; D039001:Integrin alpha Chains; D047908:Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; C091367:alpha E integrins; D012313:RNA; D004247:DNA; C530656:HASPIN protein, human; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases