title: Papillomavirus binding factor (PBF) is an intrinsically disordered protein with potential participation in osteosarcoma genesis, in silico evidence.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Papillomavirus binding factor (PBF) or zinc finger protein 395 is a transcription factor associated to a poor prognosis in patients with osteosarcoma, an aggressive bone cancer that predominantly affects adolescents. To investigate the role of the PBF protein in the osteosarcoma genesis, in this paper we present the bioinformatics analysis of physicochemical properties of PBF and its probable interactions with several key cellular targets.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The physicochemical characteristics determined to PBF, disorder-promoting amino acids, flexibility, hydrophobicity, prediction of secondary and tertiary structures and probability to be crystallized, supported that this protein can be considered as an intrinsically disordered protein (IDP), with a zinc finger-like domain. The in silico analysis to find out PBF interactions with cellular factors, confirmed the experimentally demonstrated interaction of PBF with two key cellular proteins involved in regulation of cellular apoptosis, 14-3-3β and Scythe/BAT3 proteins. Furthermore, other interactions were found with proteins like HDAC1 and TPR which are known to be deregulated in several cancers. Experimental confirmation of specific interactions will contribute to understand the osteosarcoma process and might lead to the identification of new targets for diagnosis and treatments.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  According to the in silico PBF analyses, this protein can be considered as an IDP capable to bind several key cellular factors, and these interactions might play an important role in the osteosarcoma process.
authors.forename: Paola
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Castillo
authors.forename: Abraham F
authors.initials: AF
authors.lastname: Cetina
authors.forename: Alfonso
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Méndez-Tenorio
authors.forename: Lennane Michel
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Espinoza-Fonseca
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Escuela Nacional de Ciencias Biológicas, Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Carpio y Plan de Ayala S/N, Casco de Santo Tomás, México, DF 11340, México. bbarron@ipn.mx.
authors.forename: Blanca L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Barrón
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001483:Base Sequence; D001859:Bone Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism / Q000821:virology*; D003198:Computer Simulation; D006801:Humans; D064267:Intrinsically Disordered Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D012516:Osteosarcoma / Q000378:metabolism / Q000821:virology*; D027383:Papillomaviridae / Q000378:metabolism*; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D012689:Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid; D016335:Zinc Fingers
chemical_list: D064267:Intrinsically Disordered Proteins