A nuclear localized protein ZCCHC9 is expressed in cerebral cortex and suppresses the MAPK signal pathway

The CCHC-type zinc finger motif has numerous biological activities (such as DNA binding and RNA binding) and can also mediate protein-protein interaction. This article gives a primary report about the human ZCCHC9 gene. Protein ZCCHC9 contains four CCHC motifs and is highly conserved in humans, mice, and rats. The whole cDNA sequence of the ZCCHC9 gene has been amplified by PCR and a number of plasmids have been constructed for further study. The results show that ZCCHC9 is localized in the nucleus, and especially concentrated in the nucleolus. It is highly expressed in the brain and testicles of the mouse. This has been confirmed by real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). In situ hybridization of the mouse brain indicates that ZCCHC9 is mainly expressed in the cerebral cortex. Reporter gene assay shows that ZCCHC9 suppresses the transcription activities of NF-kappa B and SRE, and may play roles in the Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase (MAPK) signaling transduction pathway.