Serum response factor, also known as SRF, is a transcription factor

Transcription factor

In molecular biology and genetics, a transcription factor is a protein that binds to specific DNA sequences, thereby controlling the flow of genetic information from DNA to mRNA...

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It is a member of the MADS

MADS-box

The MADS box is a conserved sequence motif found in genes which comprise the MADS-box gene family. The MADS box encodes the DNA-binding MADS domain. The MADS domain binds to DNA sequences of high similarity to the motif CC[A/T]6GG termed the CArG-box. MADS-domain proteins are generally...

 (MCM1, Agamous, Deficiens, and SRF) box superfamily of transcription factors. This protein binds to the serum response element (SRE) in the promoter region of target genes. This protein regulates the activity of many immediate-early genes, for example c-fos

C-Fos

In the field of molecular biology and Genetics, c-Fos is a protein encoded by the FOS gene.-Structure and function:c-Fos is a cellular proto-oncogene belonging to the immediate early gene family of transcription factors. c-Fos has a leucine-zipper DNA binding domain, and a transactivation domain at...

, and thereby participates in cell cycle

Cell cycle

The cell cycle, or cell-division cycle, is the series of events that takes place in a cell leading to its division and duplication . In cells without a nucleus , the cell cycle occurs via a process termed binary fission...

 regulation, apoptosis

Apoptosis

Apoptosis is the process of programmed cell death that may occur in multicellular organisms. Biochemical events lead to characteristic cell changes and death. These changes include blebbing, cell shrinkage, nuclear fragmentation, chromatin condensation, and chromosomal DNA fragmentation...

, cell growth, and cell differentiation

Cellular differentiation

In developmental biology, cellular differentiation is the process by which a less specialized cell becomes a more specialized cell type. Differentiation occurs numerous times during the development of a multicellular organism as the organism changes from a simple zygote to a complex system of...

. This gene is the downstream target of many pathways; for example, the mitogen-activated protein kinase

Mitogen-activated protein kinase

Mitogen-activated protein kinases are serine/threonine-specific protein kinases that respond to extracellular stimuli and regulate various cellular activities, such as gene expression, mitosis, differentiation, proliferation, and cell survival/apoptosis.-Activation:MAP kinases are activated...

 pathway (MAPK) that acts through the ternary complex factors (TCFs).

SRF is considered very important during the development of the embryo, as it has been linked to the formation of mesoderm

Mesoderm

In all bilaterian animals, the mesoderm is one of the three primary germ cell layers in the very early embryo. The other two layers are the ectoderm and endoderm , with the mesoderm as the middle layer between them.The mesoderm forms mesenchyme , mesothelium, non-epithelial blood corpuscles and...

. In the fully developed mammal, SRF is crucial for the growth of skeletal muscle. Interaction of SRF with other proteins, such as steroid hormone receptor

Steroid hormone receptor

Steroid hormone receptors are found on the plasma membrane, in the cytosol and also in the nucleus of target cells. They are generally intracellular receptors and initiate signal transduction for steroid hormones which lead to changes in gene expression over a time period of hours to days...

s, may contribute to regulation of muscle growth by steroid

Steroid

A steroid is a type of organic compound that contains a characteristic arrangement of four cycloalkane rings that are joined to each other. Examples of steroids include the dietary fat cholesterol, the sex hormones estradiol and testosterone, and the anti-inflammatory drug dexamethasone.The core...

s.

Lack of skin SRF is associated with psoriasis

Psoriasis

Psoriasis is an autoimmune disease that appears on the skin. It occurs when the immune system mistakes the skin cells as a pathogen, and sends out faulty signals that speed up the growth cycle of skin cells. Psoriasis is not contagious. However, psoriasis has been linked to an increased risk of...

 and other skin diseases.

Interactions

Serum response factor 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 NFYA

NFYA

Nuclear transcription factor Y subunit alpha is a protein that in humans is encoded by the NFYA gene.-Interactions:NFYA has been shown to interact with Serum response factor and ZHX1....

, Src

Src (gene)

Proto-oncogene tyrosine-protein kinase Src is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the SRC gene.Src is a proto-oncogene encoding a tyrosine kinase originally discovered by J. Michael Bishop and Harold E. Varmus, for which they won the 1989 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. It belongs to a...

, CREB-binding protein, GTF2I

GTF2I

General transcription factor II-I is a protein that in humans is encoded by the GTF2I gene.-Interactions:GTF2I has been shown to interact with USF1 , Histone deacetylase 2, PRKG1, Myc, MAPK3, HDAC3, Serum response factor and Bruton's tyrosine kinase.-Further reading:...

, ATF6

ATF6

Activating transcription factor 6, also known as ATF6, is a protein that, in humans, is encoded by the ATF6 gene and is involved in unfolded protein response.- Function :...

, Nuclear receptor co-repressor 2

Nuclear receptor co-repressor 2

The nuclear receptor co-repressor 2 is a transcriptional coregulatory protein that contains several nuclear receptor-interacting domains. In addition, NCOR2 appears to recruit histone deacetylases to DNA promoter regions. Hence NCOR2 assists nuclear receptors in the down regulation of target...

, CEBPB

CEBPB

CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein beta is a protein that in humans is encoded by the CEBPB gene.- Function :The protein encoded by this intronless gene is a bZIP transcription factor that can bind as a homodimer to certain DNA regulatory regions. It can also form heterodimers with the related proteins...

, GATA4

GATA4

Transcription factor GATA-4 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the GATA4 gene.-Interactions:GATA4 has been shown to interact with NKX2-5, TBX5, ZFPM2, Serum response factor and HAND2.HDAC2- External links :...

, Myogenin

Myogenin

Myogenin , also known as MYOG, is a gene.Myogenin is a muscle-specific basic-helix-loop-helix transcription factor involved in the coordination of skeletal muscle development and repair...

, GTF2F1

GTF2F1

General transcription factor IIF subunit 1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the GTF2F1 gene.-Interactions:GTF2F1 has been shown to interact with TAF1, HNRPU, GTF2H4, CTDP1, TATA binding protein, POLR2A, MED21, TAF11, Serum response factor and Transcription Factor II B.-Further reading:...

, TEAD1

TEAD1

Transcriptional enhancer factor TEF-1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the TEAD1 gene.-Interactions:TEAD1 has been shown to interact with MEF2C, Serum response factor and MAX.-Further reading:...

, ELK4

ELK4

ETS domain-containing protein Elk-4 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ELK4 gene.-Interactions:ELK4 has been shown to interact with Serum response factor and BRCA1.-Further reading:...

, Promyelocytic leukemia protein

Promyelocytic leukemia protein

Probable transcription factor PML is a tumor suppressor protein that in humans is encoded by the PML gene.-Interactions:Promyelocytic leukemia protein has been shown to interact with Retinoic acid receptor alpha, HDAC1, Nerve Growth factor IB, SKI protein, Zinc finger and BTB domain-containing...

 and ASCC3

ASCC3

Activating signal cointegrator 1 complex subunit 3 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ASCC3 gene.-Interactions:ASCC3 has been shown to interact with RELA, C-jun and Serum response factor.-Further reading:...

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External links