Makoto Nishizawa

Bach proteins belong to a novel family of BTB-basic leucine zipper transcription factors that interact with MafK and regulate transcription through the NF-E2 site.

Members of the small Maf family (MafK, MafF, and MafG) are basic region leucine zipper (bZip) proteins that can function as transcriptional activators or repressors. The dimer compositions of their DNA binding forms determine whether the small Maf family proteins activate or repress transcription. Using a yeast two-hybrid screen with a GAL4-MafK fusion protein, we have identified two novel bZip transcription factors, Bach1 and Bach2, as heterodimerization partners of MafK. In addition to a Capncollar-type bZip domain, these Bach proteins possess a BTB domain which is a protein interaction motif; Bach1 and Bach2 show significant similarity to each other in these regions but are otherwise divergent. Whereas expression of Bach1 appears ubiquitous, that of Bach2 is restricted to monocytes and neuronal cells. Bach proteins bind in vitro to NF-E2 binding sites, recognition elements for the hematopoietic transcription factor NF-E2, by forming heterodimers with MafK. Furthermore, a DNA binding complex that contained MafK as well as Bach2 or a protein related closely to Bach2 was found to be present in mouse brain cells. Bach1 and Bach2 function as transcription repressors in transfection assays using fibroblast cells, but they function as a transcriptional activator and repressor, respectively, in cultured erythroid cells. The results suggest that members of the Bach family play important roles in coordinating transcription activation and repression by MafK.

Cloning and characterization of a novel erythroid cell-derived CNC family transcription factor heterodimerizing with the small Maf family proteins.

The chicken beta-globin enhancer is critical for the tissue- and developmental stage-specific expression of the beta-globin genes. This enhancer contains two indispensable cis elements, one containing two GATA sites and the other containing an NF-E2 site. To identify the putative transcription factor acting through the NF-E2 motif in the chicken beta-globin enhancer, we screened chicken cDNA libraries with a mouse p45 NF-E2 cDNA probe and isolated cDNA clones which encode a protein of 582 amino acid residues. This protein contains a region that includes the basic region-leucine zipper domain which is well conserved among members of the CNC family proteins (Cap n collar, p45 NF-E2, LCR-F1, Nrf1, and Nrf2). Hence, we named this protein ECH (erythroid cell-derived protein with CNC homology). ECH is expressed abundantly in cultured erythroid cells undergoing terminal differentiation, peripheral erythrocytes, and some nonhematopoietic tissues. Since most of the cDNA clones obtained from the chicken erythrocyte cDNA library encoded ECH, ECH is likely the predominant CNC family protein present in avian peripheral erythrocytes. Like p45 NF-E2, ECH can heterodimerize with any of the small Maf family proteins and bind the NF-E2 site as a heterodimer in vitro. In a transfection assay, ECH transactivates transcription depending on the presence of NF-E2 sites on the reporter gene plasmid. These results indicate that ECH is likely a key regulator of avian erythropoiesis.

MafB, a new Maf family transcription activator that can associate with Maf and Fos but not with Jun.

We have identified a new member of the maf oncogene family and named it mafB. This gene is expressed in a wide variety of tissues and encodes a protein of 311 amino acids containing a typical bZip motif in its carboxy-terminal region. In the bZip domain, MafB shares extensive homology not only with v-Maf but also with other Maf-related proteins. As expected from its structure, MafB forms a homodimer through its leucine repeat structure and specifically binds Maf-recognition elements (MAREs). In addition, MafB forms heterodimers with v-Maf and Fos through its zipper structure. However, unlike v-Maf, MafB fails to associate with Jun. Transient cotransfection assays revealed that both v-Maf and MafB act as transactivators for a promoter linked to MAREs, although MafB is less potent than v-Maf. As is the case for the c-maf gene, overexpression of the mafB gene induces transformation of chicken embryo fibroblasts in vitro. Through formation of numerous bZip dimers, the Maf family proteins along with the AP-1 components should provide great diversity in transcriptional regulation for a wide variety of genes.

Small Maf Proteins Heterodimerize with Fos and May Act as Competitive Repressors of the NF-E2 Transcription Factor

The maf oncogene encodes a bZip nuclear protein which recognizes sequences related to an AP-1 site either as a homodimer or as heterodimers with Fos and Jun. We describe here a novel maf-related gene, mafG, which shows extensive homology with two other maf-related genes, mafK and mafF. These three maf-related genes encode small basic-leucine zipper proteins lacking the trans-activator domain of v-Maf. Bacterially expressed small Maf proteins bind to DNA as homodimers with a sequence recognition profile that is virtually identical to that of v-Maf. As we have previously described, the three small Maf proteins also dimerize with the large subunit of NF-E2 (p45) to form an erythroid cell-specific transcription factor, NF-E2, which has distinct DNA-binding specificity. This study shows that the small Maf proteins can also dimerize among themselves and with Fos and a newly identified p45-related molecule (Ech) but not with v-Maf or Jun. Although the small Maf proteins preferentially recognize the consensus NF-E2 sequence as heterodimers with either NF-E2 p45, Ech, or Fos, these heterodimers seemed to be different in their transactivation potentials. Coexpression of Fos and small Mafs could not activate a promoter with tandem repeats of the NF-E2 site. These results raise the possibility that tissue-specific gene expression and differentiation of erythroid cells are regulated by competition among Fos, NF-E2 p45, and Ech for small Maf proteins and for binding sites.