Disease relevance of NMNAT2

• Sections of pancreas from insulinoma patients showed strong expression of hNMNAT-2 protein in the insulin-producing tumour cells, whereas acinar cells exhibited relatively low expression of hNMNAT-2 protein [1].

High impact information on NMNAT2

• Analyses of the subcellular localization confirmed NMNAT1 to be a nuclear protein, whereas NMNAT2 and -3 were localized to the Golgi complex and the mitochondria, respectively [2].
• Anti-peptide antibody to a unique epitope within hNMNAT-2 was produced, and immunohistochemical analysis of sections of normal adult human pancreas revealed that hNMNAT-2 protein was markedly expressed in the islets of Langerhans [1].
• Expressed hNMNAT-2 shared only 35% amino acid sequence homology with the human NMNAT enzyme (hNMNAT-1), but possessed enzymic activity comparable with hNMNAT-1 [1].

Biological context of NMNAT2

• Its subcellular localization and tissue distribution are distinct from the previously identified human nuclear PNAT-1 and PNAT-2 [3].
• Using human genomic databases, hNMNAT-2 was localized to chromosome 1q25 within a 171 kb gene, whereas hNMNAT-1 is on chromosome 1p32-35 [1].

Analytical, diagnostic and therapeutic context of NMNAT2

• Northern blot analysis revealed highly restricted expression of hNMNAT-2 to brain, heart and muscle tissues, which contrasts with the wide tissue expression of hNMNAT-1; different regions of the brain exhibited differential expression of hNMNAT-2 [1].

References