Researchers uncover structure of new protein implicated in diabetes
Friday, April 5, 2013 - 05:30
in Biology & Nature
(Phys.org) —Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory, in collaboration with researchers from the Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute in Orlando, Fla., recently determined and analyzed the three-dimensional structure of a protein found in the nuclei of liver and pancreatic cells. The protein, called hepatocyte nuclear factor 4α (HNF-4α), plays a critical role by binding to specific DNA sequences and regulating the production of a number of key proteins for normal cellular processes. Some of its mutations have been linked to maturity-onset diabetes, kidney failure and metabolic syndrome.