NCBI Summary:
This gene encodes a member of the family of NGFI-A binding (NAB) proteins, which function in the nucleus to repress transcription induced by some members of the EGR (early growth response) family of transactivators. NAB proteins can homo- or hetero-multimerize with other EGR or NAB proteins through a conserved N-terminal domain, and repress transcription through two partially redundant C-terminal domains. Transcriptional repression by the encoded protein is mediated in part by interactions with the nucleosome remodeling and deactylase (NuRD) complex. Alternatively spliced transcript variants have been described, but their biological validity has not been determined. [provided by RefSeq]
General function
Nucleic acid binding, DNA binding, Transcription factor
Comment
Prostaglandin F2alpha stimulates the expression and secretion of transforming growth factor B1 via induction of the early growth response 1 gene (EGR1) in the bovine corpus luteum. Hou X et al. In most mammals, prostaglandin F2alpha (PGF2alpha) is believed to be a trigger that induces the regression of the corpus luteum (CL), whereby progesterone synthesis is inhibited, the luteal structure involutes, and the reproductive cycle resumes. Studies have shown that the early growth response 1 (EGR1) protein can induce the expression of proapoptotic proteins, suggesting that EGR1 may play a role in luteal regression. Our hypothesis is that EGR1 mediates the actions of PGF2alpha by inducing the expression of TGF beta1 (TGFB1), a key tissue remodeling protein. The levels of EGR1 mRNA and protein were up-regulated in the bovine CL during PGF2alpha-induced luteolysis in vivo and in PGF2alpha-treated luteal cells in vitro. Using chemical and genetic approaches, the RAF/MAPK kinase (MEK) 1/ERK pathway was identified as a proximal signaling event required for the induction of EGR1 in PGF2alpha-treated cells. Treatment with PGF2alpha increased the expression of TGFB1 mRNA and protein as well as the binding of EGR1 protein to TGFB1 promoter in bovine luteal cells. The effect of PGF2alpha on TGFB1 expression was mimicked by a protein kinase C (PKC)/RAF/MEK1/ERK activator or adenoviral-mediated expression of EGR1. The stimulatory effect of PGF2alpha on TGFB1 mRNA and TGFB1 protein secretion was inhibited by blockade of MEK1/ERK signaling and by adenoviral-mediated expression of NAB2, an EGR1 binding protein that inhibits EGR1 transcriptional activity. Treatment of luteal cells with TGFB1 reduced progesterone secretion, implicating TGFB1 in luteal regression. These studies demonstrate that PGF2alpha stimulates the expression of EGR1 and TGFB1 in the CL. We suggest that EGR1 plays a role in the expression of genes whose cognate proteins coordinate luteal regression.