Apetala 2 is a gene coding for a member of a large family of transcription factors, the AP2/EREBP

Ethylene-responsive element binding protein

Ethylene-responsive element binding protein ' is a homeobox gene from Arabidopsis thaliana and other plants which encodes a transcription factor. EREBP is responsible in part for mediating the response in plants to the plant hormone ethylene....

 family. In Arabidopsis thaliana

Arabidopsis thaliana

Arabidopsis thaliana is a small flowering plant native to Europe, Asia, and northwestern Africa. A spring annual with a relatively short life cycle, arabidopsis is popular as a model organism in plant biology and genetics...

which plays a role in the ABC model of flower development

The ABC Model of Flower Development

The ABC model of flower development in angiosperms was formulated by Enrico Coen and Elliot Meyerowitz in 1991. This model is built on the observation of mutants with defects in floral organ development...

. It was originally thought that this family of proteins was plant-specific, however recent studies have shown that apicomplexans, including the causative agent of malaria

Malaria

Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...

, Plasmodium falciparum

Plasmodium falciparum

Plasmodium falciparum is a protozoan parasite, one of the species of Plasmodium that cause malaria in humans. It is transmitted by the female Anopheles mosquito. Malaria caused by this species is the most dangerous form of malaria, with the highest rates of complications and mortality...

encode a related set of transcription factors, called the ApiAP2 family.

In the A. thaliana transcription factor RAV1 the N-terminal AP2 domain binds 5'-CAACA-3' sequence, while the C-terminal highly conserved B3 domain binds 5'-CACCTG-3' sequence.