title: Molecular cloning and functional characterization of the transcription factor YY2.
abstract: YY1 is a ubiquitous zinc finger transcription factor that binds to and regulates promoters and enhancers of many cellular and viral genes. Here we report the isolation of a human cDNA encoding a DNA sequence-specific binding protein with significant homology to the transcription factor YY1. A sequence analysis of this novel protein, YY2, revealed an overall 65% identity in the DNA sequence and a 56% identity in protein sequence compared with human YY1. The most pronounced similarity between YY1 and YY2 exists within the zinc finger regions of the two proteins, and consistent with this observation, YY2 can bind to and regulate some promoters known to be controlled by YY1. Similar to YY1, YY2 contains both transcriptional activation and repression functions. The finding of a protein with structure and function similar to YY1 provides a new opportunity to explore additional mechanisms by which YY1-responsive genes can be regulated and suggests that gene regulation by YY1 is far more complicated than previously assumed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida 33612, USA.
authors.forename: Nang
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.forename: Xiaohong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Nancy
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Olashaw
authors.forename: Edward
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Seto
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001665:Binding Sites; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D004247:DNA / Q000378:metabolism; D018076:DNA, Complementary / Q000302:isolation & purification; D050981:Erythroid-Specific DNA-Binding Factors; D006367:HeLa Cells; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D050986:YY1 Transcription Factor; D016335:Zinc Fingers
chemical_list: D018076:DNA, Complementary; D050981:Erythroid-Specific DNA-Binding Factors; D014157:Transcription Factors; D050986:YY1 Transcription Factor; C494698:YY1 protein, human; D004247:DNA