GEPHE SUMMARY Print
Gephebase Gene
Entry Status
Published
GepheID
GP00001364
Main curator
Prigent
PHENOTYPIC CHANGE
Trait Category
Trait State in Taxon A
Human-dark pigmentation
Trait State in Taxon B
human-light pigmentation and presence of freckles and brown hairs and high sensitivity of skin to sun exposure
Ancestral State
Taxon A
Taxonomic Status
Taxon A
Latin Name
Common Name
human
Synonyms
human; man; Homo sapiens Linnaeus, 1758; Home sapiens; Homo sampiens; Homo sapeins; Homo sapian; Homo sapians; Homo sapien; Homo sapience; Homo sapiense; Homo sapients; Homo sapines; Homo spaiens; Homo spiens; Humo sapiens
Rank
species
Lineage
Show more ... opterygii; Dipnotetrapodomorpha; Tetrapoda; Amniota; Mammalia; Theria; Eutheria; Boreoeutheria; Euarchontoglires; Primates; Haplorrhini; Simiiformes; Catarrhini; Hominoidea; Hominidae; Homininae; Homo
NCBI Taxonomy ID
is Taxon A an Infraspecies?
No
Taxon B
Latin Name
Common Name
human
Synonyms
human; man; Homo sapiens Linnaeus, 1758; Home sapiens; Homo sampiens; Homo sapeins; Homo sapian; Homo sapians; Homo sapien; Homo sapience; Homo sapiense; Homo sapients; Homo sapines; Homo spaiens; Homo spiens; Humo sapiens
Rank
species
Lineage
Show more ... opterygii; Dipnotetrapodomorpha; Tetrapoda; Amniota; Mammalia; Theria; Eutheria; Boreoeutheria; Euarchontoglires; Primates; Haplorrhini; Simiiformes; Catarrhini; Hominoidea; Hominidae; Homininae; Homo
NCBI Taxonomy ID
is Taxon B an Infraspecies?
No
GENOTYPIC CHANGE
Generic Gene Name
IRF4
Synonyms
MUM1; LSIRF; SHEP8; NF-EM5
Sequence Similarities
Belongs to the IRF family.
UniProtKB
Homo sapiens
GenebankID or UniProtKB
Presumptive Null
No
Molecular Type
Aberration Type
SNP
Molecular Details of the Mutation
a C>T substitution in intron4 located within an enhancer
Experimental Evidence
Authors
Praetorius C; Grill C; Stacey SN; Metcalf AM; Gorkin DU; Robinson KC; Van Otterloo E; Kim RS; et al. ... show more
Abstract
Sequence polymorphisms linked to human diseases and phenotypes in genome-wide association studies often affect noncoding regions. A SNP within an intron of the gene encoding Interferon Regulatory Factor 4 (IRF4), a transcription factor with no known role in melanocyte biology, is strongly associated with sensitivity of skin to sun exposure, freckles, blue eyes, and brown hair color. Here, we demonstrate that this SNP lies within an enhancer of IRF4 transcription in melanocytes. The allele associated with this pigmentation phenotype impairs binding of the TFAP2A transcription factor that, together with the melanocyte master regulator MITF, regulates activity of the enhancer. Assays in zebrafish and mice reveal that IRF4 cooperates with MITF to activate expression of Tyrosinase (TYR), an essential enzyme in melanin synthesis. Our findings provide a clear example of a noncoding polymorphism that affects a phenotype by modulating a developmental gene regulatory network.

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