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Mol Cell Biol, June 1998, p. 3130-3139, Vol. 18, No. 6
0270-7306/98/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1998, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Characterization of ABF-1, a Novel Basic Helix-Loop-Helix Transcription Factor Expressed in Activated B Lymphocytes

Mark Eben Massari,1 Richard R. Rivera,1 Joseph R. Voland,1 Melanie W Quong,1 Timo M. Breit,2,dagger Jacques J. M. van Dongen,2 Oncko de Smit,1 and Cornelis Murre1,*

Department of Biology, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093,1 and Department of Immunology, Erasmus University/University Hospital Dijkzigt, Rotterdam, The Netherlands2

Received 31 October 1997/Returned for modification 12 December 1997/Accepted 26 February 1998

Proteins of the basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) family are required for a number of different developmental pathways, including neurogenesis, lymphopoiesis, myogenesis, and sex determination. Using a yeast two-hybrid screen, we have identified a new bHLH transcription factor, ABF-1, from a human B-cell cDNA library. Within the bHLH region, ABF-1 shows a remarkable conservation with other HLH proteins, including tal-1, NeuroD, and paraxis. Its expression pattern is restricted to a subset of lymphoid tissues, Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-transformed lymphoblastoid cell lines, and activated human B cells. ABF-1 is capable of binding an E-box element either as a homodimer or as a heterodimer with E2A. Furthermore, a heterodimeric complex containing ABF-1 and E2A can be detected in EBV-immortalized lymphoblastoid cell lines. ABF-1 contains a transcriptional repression domain and is capable of inhibiting the transactivation capability of E47 in mammalian cells. ABF-1 represents the first example of a B-cell-restricted bHLH protein, and its expression pattern suggests that ABF-1 may play a role in regulating antigen-dependent B-cell differentiation.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Biology, 0366, University of California, San Diego, Pacific Hall, 1st Floor, 9500 Gilman Dr., La Jolla, CA 92093-0366. Phone: (619) 534-8796. Fax: (619) 534-7550. E-mail: murre{at}biomail.ucsd.edu.

dagger Present address: Center for Blood Research, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115.

Mol Cell Biol, June 1998, p. 3130-3139, Vol. 18, No. 6
0270-7306/98/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1998, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.


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