abstract |
Novel clock proteins BMAL2 (Brain-Muscle-Arnt-Like proteins 2) being important in the clock oscillation mechanism involving an optical input pathway and an output pathway; novel clock genes encoding these proteins; a method of screening a substance promoting or inhibiting a promoter transcriptional activity by using the same; etc. cCLOCK, cPER2 and cBMAL1 genes are isolated by using chick pineal body which is a material suitable for studying circadian clock. Further, a cDNA encoding a novel clock protein cBMAL2, which showing a homology with cBMAL1, is isolated and its sequence is determined. Moreover, human, mouse and rat BMAL2 cDNAs are isolated respectively from a human embryo kidney cell line, mouse midbrain and rat early fibroblasts and the sequences of these cDNAs are determined. BMAL2 forms a hetero dimer with CLOCK, BMAL1, etc. It also forms a homo dimer. |