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New member of the winged-helix protein family disrupted in mouse and rat nude mutations

New member of the winged-helix protein family disrupted in mouse and rat nude mutations MUTATIONS at the nude locus of mice and rats disrupt normal hair growth and thymus development1,2, causing nude mice and rats to be immune-deficient. The mouse nude locus has been localized on chromosome 11 (refs 3, 4) within a region of < 1 megabase5. Here we show that one of the genes from this critical region, designated whn, encodes a new member of the winged-helix domain family of transcription factors6,7, and that it is disrupted on mouse nu and rat rnuN alleles. Mutant transcripts do not encode the character-istic DNA-binding domain, strongly suggesting that the whn gene is the nude gene. Mutations in winged-helix domain genes cause homeotic transformations in Drosophila 8 and distort cell-fate deci-sions during vulval development in Caenorhabditis elegans 9. The whn gene is thus the first member of this class of genes to be implicated in a specific developmental defect in vertebrates. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Nature Springer Journals

New member of the winged-helix protein family disrupted in mouse and rat nude mutations

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References (1)

Publisher
Springer Journals
Copyright
Copyright © 1994 by Nature Publishing Group
Subject
Science, Humanities and Social Sciences, multidisciplinary; Science, Humanities and Social Sciences, multidisciplinary; Science, multidisciplinary
ISSN
0028-0836
eISSN
1476-4687
DOI
10.1038/372103a0
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

MUTATIONS at the nude locus of mice and rats disrupt normal hair growth and thymus development1,2, causing nude mice and rats to be immune-deficient. The mouse nude locus has been localized on chromosome 11 (refs 3, 4) within a region of < 1 megabase5. Here we show that one of the genes from this critical region, designated whn, encodes a new member of the winged-helix domain family of transcription factors6,7, and that it is disrupted on mouse nu and rat rnuN alleles. Mutant transcripts do not encode the character-istic DNA-binding domain, strongly suggesting that the whn gene is the nude gene. Mutations in winged-helix domain genes cause homeotic transformations in Drosophila 8 and distort cell-fate deci-sions during vulval development in Caenorhabditis elegans 9. The whn gene is thus the first member of this class of genes to be implicated in a specific developmental defect in vertebrates.

Journal

Nature – Springer Journals

Published: Nov 3, 1994

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