Liver X receptor alpha is a nuclear receptor

Nuclear receptor

In the field of molecular biology, nuclear receptors are a class of proteins found within cells that are responsible for sensing steroid and thyroid hormones and certain other molecules...

 protein that in humans is encoded by the NR1H3 gene

Gene

A gene is a molecular unit of heredity of a living organism. It is a name given to some stretches of DNA and RNA that code for a type of protein or for an RNA chain that has a function in the organism. Living beings depend on genes, as they specify all proteins and functional RNA chains...

 (nuclear receptor subfamily 1, group H, member 3).

Expression

miRNA hsa-miR-613 autoregulates the human LXRα gene by targeting the endogenous LXRα through its specific miRNA response element (613MRE) within the LXRα 3′-untranslated region. LXRα autoregulates its own suppression via induction of SREBP1c which upregulates miRNA hsa-miR-613.

Function

The liver X receptor

Liver X receptor

The liver X receptor is a member of the nuclear receptor family of transcription factors and is closely related to nuclear receptors such as the PPARs, FXR and RXR. Liver X receptors are important regulators of cholesterol, fatty acid, and glucose homeostasis...

s, LXRα (this protein) and LXRβ

Liver X receptor beta

Liver X receptor beta is a member of the nuclear receptor family of transcription factors. LXR-β is encoded by the gene .- Function :...

, form a subfamily of the nuclear receptor superfamily and are key regulators of macrophage

Macrophage

Macrophages are cells produced by the differentiation of monocytes in tissues. Human macrophages are about in diameter. Monocytes and macrophages are phagocytes. Macrophages function in both non-specific defense as well as help initiate specific defense mechanisms of vertebrate animals...

 function, controlling transcriptional programs involved in lipid homeostasis and inflammation. The inducible LXRα is highly expressed in liver, adrenal gland, intestine, adipose tissue, macrophages, lung, and kidney, whereas LXRβ is ubiquitously expressed. Ligand-activated LXRs form obligate heterodimers with retinoid X receptor

Retinoid X receptor

The retinoid X receptor is a type of nuclear receptor that is activated by 9-cis retinoic acid. There are three retinoic X receptors : RXR-alpha, RXR-beta, and RXR-gamma, encoded by the , , genes, respectively....

s (RXRs) and regulate expression of target genes containing LXR response element

Response element

Response elements are short sequences of DNA within a gene promoter region that are able to bind a specific transcription factor and regulate transcription of genes.-Examples:Examples of response elements include:*Hormone response element...

s.

Interactions

Liver X receptor alpha has been shown to interact

Protein-protein interaction

Protein–protein interactions occur when two or more proteins bind together, often to carry out their biological function. Many of the most important molecular processes in the cell such as DNA replication are carried out by large molecular machines that are built from a large number of protein...

 with EDF1

EDF1

Endothelial differentiation-related factor 1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the EDF1 gene.-Interactions:EDF1 has been shown to interact with Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma, TATA binding protein and Liver X receptor alpha....

 and Small heterodimer partner

Small heterodimer partner

The small heterodimer partner also known as NR0B2 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the NR0B2 gene. SHP is a member of the nuclear receptor family of intracellular transcription factors. SHP is unusual for a nuclear receptor in that it lacks a DNA binding domain...

.

Further reading