Disease relevance of CREBZF

• Zhangfei (ZF) is a basic region-leucine zipper protein that has been implicated in herpesvirus infection cycle and related cellular processes [1].

High impact information on CREBZF

• It is possible to explain the unusual divergence pattern of the mammalian Y-linked ZF genes by interchromosomal gene conversion by X-linked ZF genes [2].
• We have previously reported (Villa et al. (1993), Genomics 18: 223) the characterization of the human ZNF75 gene located on Xq26, which has only limited homology (less than 65%) to other ZF genes in the databases [3].
• A reading frame starting at least 75 amino acids before the first zinc finger and ending 11 amino acids after the last one was identified; comparison with other ZF genes suggests that this genomic fragment represents the carboxy-terminal exon of the gene [4].
• Here we report a second human protein, Zhangfei (ZF) that interacts with HCF in a fashion similar to Luman and VP16 [5].
• Unlike Luman, or most other bZIP proteins, ZF by itself did not appear to bind consensus bZIP-binding sites [5].

Biological context of CREBZF

• Although ZF shares no significant sequence homology with Luman, the two proteins have some structural similarities [5].
• Although in transient expression assays ectopically expressed ZF was unable to block transactivation by VP16 of a HSV IE promoter, ZF could prevent the expression of several HSV proteins in cells infected with the virus [5].

References