Zinc finger protein SNAI2 is a transcription factor that in humans is encoded by the SNAI2gene. It promotes the differentiation and migration of certain cells and has roles in initiating gastrulation.[5][6][7]
SNAI2 downregulates expression of E-cadherin in premigratory neural crest cells; thus, SNAI2 induces tightly bound epithelial cells to break into a loose mesenchymal phenotype, allowing gastrulation of mesoderm in the developing embryo.[9][10] Structurally similar to anti-apoptotic Ces-1 in C. elegans, SLUG is a negative regulator of productive cell death in the developing embryo and adults.[9][11]
Clinical significance
Widely expressed in human tissues, SLUG is most notably absent in peripheral blood leukocytes, adult liver, and both fetal and adult brain tissues.[11] SLUG plays a role in breast carcinoma as well as leukemia by downregulation of E-cadherin, which supports mesenchymal phenotype by shifting expression from a Type I to Type II cadherin profile.[11][12] Maintenance of mesenchymal phenotype enables metastasis of tumor cells, though SLUG is expressed in carcinomas regardless to invasiveness.[9][10][11] A knockout model using chick embryos has also showed inhibition of mesodermal and neural crest delamination; chick embryo Slug gain of function appears to increase neural crest production.[9] Mutations in Slug are associated with loss of pregnancy during gastrulation in some animals.[9]
Interactions
Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) precede expression of SLUG and are suspected as the immediate upstream inducers of gene expression.[10][13]
Maruyama K, Sugano S (January 1994). "Oligo-capping: a simple method to replace the cap structure of eukaryotic mRNAs with oligoribonucleotides". Gene. 138 (1–2): 171–4. doi:10.1016/0378-1119(94)90802-8. PMID8125298.
Suzuki Y, Yoshitomo-Nakagawa K, Maruyama K, Suyama A, Sugano S (October 1997). "Construction and characterization of a full length-enriched and a 5'-end-enriched cDNA library". Gene. 200 (1–2): 149–56. doi:10.1016/S0378-1119(97)00411-3. PMID9373149.
Stegmann K, Boecker J, Kosan C, Ermert A, Kunz J, Koch MC (August 1999). "Human transcription factor SLUG: mutation analysis in patients with neural tube defects and identification of a missense mutation (D119E) in the Slug subfamily-defining region". Mutation Research. 406 (2–4): 63–9. doi:10.1016/S1383-5726(99)00002-3. PMID10479723.
Hajra KM, Chen DY, Fearon ER (March 2002). "The SLUG zinc-finger protein represses E-cadherin in breast cancer". Cancer Research. 62 (6): 1613–8. PMID11912130.
