We isolated a novel gene, APCL, that showed significant homology to the adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) tumor suppressor gene. This novel gene, located on chromosome 19p13.3, encodes a protein of 2303 amino acids that is expressed specifically in the brain. The predicted protein of APCL contains five copies of a 20-amino-acid motif (FXVEXTPXCFSRXSSLSSLS). Like APC, this domain of APCL was able to bind to β-catenin and deplete the intracellular β-catenin pool. A reporter-gene assay revealed that APCL could also regulate interaction of β-catenin with T cell-specific transcription factor, although less actively than APC. These results suggest that the APCL protein may be involved in the Wnt/Wingless signal pathway, and the identification of a novel relative of APC may provide new insights into the function of APC.

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This work was supported in part by a Grant-in-Aid from the Ministry of Education, Science, Sports and Culture of Japan, and by “Research for the Future” Program Grant 96L00102 of The Japan Society for the Promotion of Science.

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©1998 American Association for Cancer Research.
1998
American Association for Cancer Research, Inc.