NCBI Summary:
Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA) is the most severe inherited retinopathy with the earliest age of onset and accounts for at least 5% of all inherited retinal diseases. Affected individuals are diagnosed at birth or in the first few months of life with nystagmus, severely impaired vision or blindness and an abnormal or flat electroretinogram. The photoreceptor/pineal-expressed gene, AIPL1, encoding aryl-hydrocarbon interacting protein-like 1, is located within the LCA4 candidate region. The encoded protein contains three tetratricopeptide motifs, consistent with chaperone or nuclear transport activity. Mutations in this gene may cause approximately 20% of recessive LCA. Alternative splicing results in multiple transcript variants. [provided by RefSeq, Jan 2014]
General function
Intracellular protein transport
Comment
Cellular localization
Cytoplasmic, Nuclear
Comment
Ovarian function
Oocyte maturation
, Germinal vesicle breakdown
Comment
ZP3 is Required for Germinal Vesicle Breakdown in Mouse Oocyte Meiosis. Gao LL et al. (2017) ZP3 is a principal component of the zona pellucida (ZP) of mammalian oocytes and is essential for normal fertility, and knockout of ZP3 causes complete infertility. ZP3 promotes fertilization by recognizing sperm binding and activating the acrosome reaction; however, additional cellular roles for ZP3 in mammalian oocytes have not been yet reported. In the current study, we found that ZP3 was strongly expressed in the nucleus during prophase and gradually translocated to the ZP. Knockdown of ZP3 by a specific siRNA dramatically inhibited germinal vesicle breakdown (GVBD) (marking the beginning of meiosis), significantly reducing the percentage of MII oocytes. To investigate the ZP3-mediated mechanisms governing GVBD, we identified potential ZP3-interacting proteins by immunoprecipitation and mass spectrometry. We identified Protein tyrosine phosphatase, receptor type K (Ptprk), Aryl hydrocarbon receptor-interacting protein-like 1 (Aipl1), and Diaphanous related formin 2 (Diaph2) as potential candidates, and established a working model to explain how ZP3 affects GVBD. Finally, we provided preliminary evidence that ZP3 regulates Akt phosphorylation, lamin binding to the nuclear membrane via Aipl1, and organization of the actin cytoskeleton via Diaph2. These findings contribute to our understanding of a novel role played by ZP3 in GVBD.//////////////////