Abstract
The c-Myc protein, the product of the c-myc proto-oncogene, is a nuclear phosphoprotein with DNA binding properties. Deregulated c-myc expression participates in the development of experimentally induced tumors, and its expression appears to be abnormal in many naturally occurring malignancies. Although the precise molecular mechanism of c-Myc activity in oncogenesis and in normal cell proliferation is unknown, recent advances have uncovered a series of molecular and cellular properties of c-Myc. These properties include nuclear localization, transcriptional activation, oligomerization, nonspecific and specific DNA binding. Recently, the c-Myc protein was found to heterodimerize with Max, a protein that cooperates with c-Myc to bind specifically to a core DNA sequence, CAC(G/A)TG. These characteristics suggest that c-Myc participates in the regulation of gene transcription in normal and neoplastic cells.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 3065-3072 |
Number of pages | 8 |
Journal | FASEB Journal |
Volume | 6 |
Issue number | 12 |
State | Published - Sep 1992 |
Keywords
- DNA binding
- Helix-loop-helix
- Leucine zipper
- Max
- Nuclear localization signal
- Oncogenes
- Transcription factor
- Transcriptional activation
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Genetics
- Molecular Biology
- Biochemistry
- Biotechnology