WDR61

What is WDR61 Protein?

WDR61 is a key player in cell functions, acting almost like a cell’s switchboard operator. It’s part of a complex that helps decide when genes should be active or inactive. By teaming up with RNA polymerase II, it oversees the transcription process, which is how the cell makes RNA from DNA. This regulatory role is crucial for proper communication within the cell. Though its exact functions aren't fully understood yet, studies suggest that WDR61 plays a role in cell growth and division. It's also been spotted in cancer research, hinting at its potential involvement in tumor progression, which makes it a protein of interest for developing new treatments.

What is the Function of WDR61 Protein?

The function of WDR61 is like the backstage manager in the grand theatre of the cell. It plays a vital role in controlling how genes are expressed, working as part of a larger complex involved with RNA polymerase II. This process, called transcription, is where RNA is made from DNA, a bit like writing down a script from a master copy. WDR61 ensures everything runs smoothly, helping regulate which genes get turned on or off at any given time. This makes it essential not just for maintaining regular cell activities, but also for supporting cell growth and division. Its role becomes even more interesting when looked at in the context of diseases like cancer, where gene regulation can go off script.

WDR61 Related Signaling Pathway

The WDR61-related signaling pathway is like an intricate communication network within our cells. WDR61 is a key component of a system that governs gene expression by controlling how RNA polymerase II reads DNA to produce RNA—a crucial step in gene expression. Think of this pathway as a train track system where WDR61 ensures that signals reach the right destinations, operating smoothly to activate or silence genes as needed. This pathway plays a significant role in ensuring cells grow, divide, and function properly, keeping everything in balance. When it goes off track, it can lead to a range of issues, including improper cell division or diseases like cancer. Researchers are keen on understanding this pathway better, as it might hold the keys to developing new therapeutic strategies.

WDR61 Related Diseases

WDR61 is a protein that's starting to get a lot of attention because of its link with certain diseases. It's part of a complex that helps regulate gene expression, and when things go wrong here, it can lead to problems. In cancer, for instance, WDR61's role in controlling how genes turn on and off can get disrupted, contributing to tumor growth and the unchecked division of cells. This makes WDR61 a potential target for cancer research, as understanding its exact role could lead to new treatment strategies. Aside from cancer, any condition stemming from gene expression errors might have ties to how well WDR61 is doing its job, making it an exciting area for further study.

Bioapplications of WDR61

WDR61 is gaining interest for its potential bioapplications, especially in medicine. Since it's deeply involved in regulating gene expression, scientists are looking at WDR61 as a target for developing new cancer treatments. If we can figure out how to tweak its activity, there might be ways to slow down or even halt tumor progression. Additionally, WDR61’s role in gene regulation means it could be key to therapies addressing genetic disorders, where correcting or modulating gene expression can make a big difference. Its involvement in fundamental cell processes suggests that studying WDR61 could unlock innovative approaches to tackle a variety of diseases, making it a hot topic in biotech research.

Case Study 1: Hou Y. et al. FEBS J. 2024

SKI8, or WDR61, has been found in breast tumors, but its function isn't well-known yet. This study dives into its role and potential as a treatment target. We discovered that removing WDR61 with tamoxifen lowers breast tumor risk, making tumors smaller and boosting survival rates. Reducing WDR61 also hampers tumor cell growth and their ability to form colonies. The protective effect comes from WDR61 loss causing genomic instability. Mechanistically, WDR61 interacts with R-loops, and without it, these R-loops build up, leading to DNA damage and slowing down cell growth.

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  Fig1. Long-term proliferation of siCtrl, siWDR61-1, and siWDR61-2 treated MCF-7 cells stained with crystal violet.
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  Fig2. siWDR61-induced DNA damage repair activation was monitored by immunoblotting with the indicated antibodies.

Case Study 2: Zhu B. et al. Genes Dev. 2005

The yeast PAF complex (yPAF) works with RNA polymerase II to mark active genes. Researchers have studied the human version, hPAF, which shares four subunits with yPAF but also includes a unique one, hSki8. Knocking down hSki8 or hCtr9 decreases other hPAF parts and certain histone marks linked to gene activity. hSki8 is also part of the human SKI complex (hSKI), which helps break down mRNA. Unlike the yeast version, hSKI is found in both the nucleus and cytoplasm. Research shows hPAF and hSKI interact, and hSKI links to active genes when hPAF is around.

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  Fig3. Silver stain of affinity-purified Flag-hPaf1 and Flag-hSki8.
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  Fig4. Western blots for various proteins and histone modifications with whole cell lysate from mock RNAi, hSki8 RNAi, and hCtr9 RNAi samples.

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  Fig1. The evolutionarily conserved Ski complex containing the 3′→5′ RNA helicase Ski2 binds to 80S ribosomes near the mRNA entrance. (Alexandra Zinoviev, 2020)
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  Fig2. Models of Independent and Cooperative Functions of hPAF1C and SII in Transcription Elongation. (Jaehoon Kim, 2010)

WDR61 has several biochemical functions, for example, protein binding. Some of the functions are cooperated with other proteins, some of the functions could acted by WDR61 itself. We selected most functions WDR61 had, and list some proteins which have the same functions with WDR61. You can find most of the proteins on our site.

Function	Related Protein
protein binding	FBXO7,RNF135,EGF,COL17A1,LNX2,H3F3B,CNTNAP2,GDAP2,C17orf81,TCEB1

WDR61 has direct interactions with proteins and molecules. Those interactions were detected by several methods such as yeast two hybrid, co-IP, pull-down and so on. We selected proteins and molecules interacted with WDR61 here. Most of them are supplied by our site. Hope this information will be useful for your research of WDR61.

CTR9;CDC73;PAF1