Characterizing the new transcription regulator protein p60TRP

Active cell death ('apoptosis' or 'programmed cell death') is essential in the development and homeostasis of multicellular organisms and abnormal inhibition of apoptosis is an indicator of cancer and autoimmune diseases, whereas excessive cell death might be implicated in neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease (AD). Using bioinformatics-, Western-blotting-, yeast-two-hybrid-system-, polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-, and fluorescence microscopy-analyses, we demonstrate here that the neuroprotective protein p60TRP (p60-transcription-regulator-protein) is a basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) domain-containing member of a new protein family that interacts with the Ran-binding-protein-5 (RanBP5) and the protein-phosphatase-2A (PP2A). The additional findings of its influence on NNT1 and p48ZnF (new-neurotrophin-1, p48-zinc-finger-protein)-signaling and its down-regulation in the brain of AD subjects point to a possible pivotal role of p60TRP in the control of cellular aging and survival. (C) 2004 Wiley-Liss, Inc.