The tumor suppressor hTid1 inhibits STAT5b activity via functional interaction

STAT5a and -5b (signal transducers and activators of transcription 5a and 5b) proteins play an essential role in hematopoietic cell proliferation and survival and are frequently constitutively active in hematologic neoplasms and solid tumors. Because STAT5a and STAT5b differ mainly in the carboxyl-terminal transactivation domain, we sought to identify new proteins that bind specifically to this domain by using a bacterial two-hybrid screening. We isolated hTid1, a human DnaJ protein that acts as a tumor suppressor in various solid tumors. hTid1 interacts specifically with STAT5b but not with STAT5a in hematopoietic cell lines. This interaction involves the cysteine-rich region of the hTid1 DnaJ domain. We also demonstrated that hTid1 negatively regulates the expression and transcriptional activity of STAT5b and suppresses the growth of hematopoietic cells transformed by an oncogenic form of STAT5b. Our findings define hTid1 as a novel partner and negative regulator of STAT5b.