Identification and characterization of two novel zinc finger genes, ZNF359 and ZFP28, in human development

Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2002 Jul 26;295(4):862-8. doi: 10.1016/s0006-291x(02)00759-3.

Abstract

Transcription factors play an essential role in controlling gene expression during cardiac and vascular pathogeneses. Identification of regulatory genes in the cardiovascular system is a necessary step toward an understanding of the pathogenesis of congenital heart disease and acquired cardiovascular diseases. The Cys2/His2 type zinc finger genes are the single largest class of transcription factors in the human genome and many numbers of these krüpple-like zinc finger genes have been found to be involved in cardiac development or cardiovascular diseases. In this study, we have identified two novel human krüpple-like zinc finger genes named ZNF359 and ZFP28 from the human heart cDNA library. The complete human ZNF359 cDNA sequence is 3270bp and contains a 1932-bp open reading frame (ORF) that encodes a 643 amino acid protein with an N-terminal KRAB domain and 16 C-terminus zinc finger C2H2 motifs. The ZFP28 cDNA sequence is 4104bp and contains a 2076-bp ORF that encodes an 868 amino acid protein with an N-terminal signal peptide, two KRAB domains, and 14 C-terminal C2H2 zinc finger motifs. Northern blot analyses showed a strong expression of ZNF359 and ZFP28 in various tissues of adult human. A further analysis using human embryonic tissues (18-23 weeks) showed a development-specific expression pattern in heart, skeletal muscle, liver, lung, kidney, and brain, suggesting a role for these genes in embryonic development.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Amino Acid Motifs
  • Blotting, Northern
  • Carrier Proteins / chemistry*
  • Carrier Proteins / physiology
  • Cloning, Molecular
  • DNA, Complementary / metabolism
  • Gene Library
  • Heart / embryology
  • Humans
  • Kruppel-Like Transcription Factors
  • Models, Biological
  • Open Reading Frames
  • Phylogeny
  • Protein Structure, Tertiary
  • Tissue Distribution
  • Transcription Factors / chemistry*
  • Transcription Factors / physiology
  • Zinc Fingers*

Substances

  • Carrier Proteins
  • DNA, Complementary
  • Kruppel-Like Transcription Factors
  • Transcription Factors
  • ZFP28 protein, human
  • ZNF23 protein, human