12 Facts About Hox gene

Protein product of each Hox gene is a transcription factor.

Each Hox gene contains a well-conserved DNA sequence known as the homeobox, of which the term "Hox" was originally a contraction.

Barrett's esophagus is the result of altered Hox gene coding and is a precursor to esophageal cancer.

So, despite having a last common ancestor that lived over 550 million years ago, the chicken and fly version of the same Hox gene are similar enough to target the same downstream genes in flies.

The lab Hox gene was initially so named because it disrupted the labial appendage; however, the lab Hox gene is not expressed in the labial segment, and the labial appendage phenotype is likely a result of the broad disorganization resulting from the failure of head involution.

Related searches

Pb Hox gene is responsible for the formation of the labial and maxillary palps.

Dfd Hox gene is responsible for the formation of the maxillary and mandibular segments in the larval head.

Scr Hox gene is responsible for cephalic and thoracic development in Drosophila embryo and adult.

The Antp Hox gene specifies this identity by promoting leg formation and allowing wing formation.

The sequence bound by the homeodomain of a Hox gene protein is only six nucleotides long, and such a short sequence would be found at random many times throughout the genome, far more than the number of actual functional sites.

In zebrafish, one of the eight Hox gene clusters has lost all protein-coding genes, and just a single microRNA gene marks the location of the original cluster.

Hox gene expression has been studied in brachiopods, annelids, and a suite of molluscs.