title: The RUNX complex: reaching beyond haematopoiesis into immunity.
abstract: Among their diverse roles as transcriptional regulators during development and cell fate specification, the RUNX transcription factors are best known for the parts they play in haematopoiesis. RUNX proteins are expressed throughout all haematopoietic lineages, being necessary for the emergence of the first haematopoietic stem cells to their terminal differentiation. Although much progress has been made since their discoveries almost two decades ago, current appreciation of RUNX in haematopoiesis is largely grounded in their lineage-specifying roles. In contrast, the importance of RUNX to immunity has been mostly obscured for historic, technical and conceptual reasons. However, this paradigm is likely to shift over time, as a primary purpose of haematopoiesis is to resource the immune system. Furthermore, recent evidence suggests a role for RUNX in the innate immunity of non-haematopoietic cells. This review takes a haematopoiesis-centric approach to collate what is known of RUNX's contribution to the overall mammalian immune system and discuss their growing prominence in areas such as autoimmunity, inflammatory diseases and mucosal immunity.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Frontier Science Initiative, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan.|Division of Genetics, Cancer Research Institute, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan.
authors.forename: Dominic Chih-Cheng
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Voon
authors.affiliation: Cancer Research Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Yit Teng
authors.initials: YT
authors.lastname: Hor
authors.affiliation: Cancer Biology Programme, Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, Singapore.
authors.forename: Yoshiaki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ito
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D015551:Autoimmunity / Q000235:genetics; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D050657:Core Binding Factor alpha Subunits / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D006410:Hematopoiesis; D006412:Hematopoietic Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007109:Immunity; D018928:Immunity, Mucosal / Q000235:genetics; D007249:Inflammation / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D008221:Lymphoid Tissue / Q000196:embryology / Q000378:metabolism; D005810:Multigene Family; D022423:Myeloid Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D038081:Organogenesis; D016176:T-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D060168:Thymocytes / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D050657:Core Binding Factor alpha Subunits; D014157:Transcription Factors
keywords: RUNX transcription factors; autoimmunity; haematopoiesis; immune system; mucosal immunity