HMGB2
HMGB2 (high mobility group box 2, also known as HMG2) is an abundant, chromatin-associated non-histone protein of the HMGB family. It bends DNA and supports transcription, chromatin remodelling and V(D)J recombination in the nucleus, and acts as a chemokine outside the cell. Browse Assay Genie's current range of HMGB2 research reagents below, or read on for the biology behind the target.
HMGB2 is a multifunctional protein with different roles in different cellular compartments, and it may act in a redox-sensitive manner. In the nucleus it is an abundant chromatin-associated protein involved in transcription, chromatin remodelling and V(D)J recombination. It binds DNA with a preference for non-canonical structures such as single-stranded DNA. It can bend DNA and enhance DNA flexibility by looping. This is proposed to promote activity at various gene promoters by improving transcription factor binding or by bringing distant regulatory sequences into close proximity.
In V(D)J recombination, HMGB2 acts as a cofactor of the RAG complex. It stimulates cleavage and RAG protein binding at the 23 bp spacer of conserved recombination signal sequences. NCBI also reports a role in the final ligation step of DNA end-joining, in both double-strand break repair and V(D)J recombination. In vitro, the protein efficiently bends DNA and forms DNA circles, which suggests it facilitates cooperative interactions between cis-acting proteins. It has also been proposed to act as a promiscuous immunogenic DNA/RNA sensor in the innate immune response to nucleic acids, cooperating with downstream discriminative sensing by specific pattern recognition receptors.
Outside the cell, HMGB2 acts as a chemokine. It promotes proliferation and migration of endothelial cells, implicating AGER/RAGE, and has antimicrobial activity in gastrointestinal epithelial tissues. It contributes to the inflammatory response to antigenic stimulus with pro-inflammatory activity, and to modulation of neurogenesis, probably by regulating neural stem cell proliferation. It is also involved in maintaining the articular cartilage surface through LEF1 and the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway. The HMGB2 gene belongs to the canonical high mobility group and the SET complex gene group, and is also known by the previous names high-mobility group (nonhistone chromosomal) protein 2 and HMG2. Mouse and rat both have an Hmgb2 ortholog.
HMGB2 bends DNA and increases its flexibility, making it a useful subject for studying how transcription factor binding and distant regulatory elements are coordinated.
As a cofactor of the RAG complex, HMGB2 stimulates cleavage and RAG binding at recombination signal sequences, linking it to antigen receptor diversification.
HMGB2 is proposed to act as a DNA/RNA sensor and has chemokine and pro-inflammatory activity, making it relevant to inflammatory response research.
HMGB2 is implicated in neural stem cell proliferation and in articular cartilage surface maintenance through LEF1 and Wnt/beta-catenin signalling.
In the nucleus, HMGB2 binds and bends DNA, supporting transcription, chromatin remodelling and V(D)J recombination, where it is a cofactor of the RAG complex. Extracellularly it acts as a chemokine and promotes endothelial cell proliferation and migration via AGER/RAGE.
The HGNC symbol is HMGB2, with HMG2 listed as an alias. Previous names include high-mobility group (nonhistone chromosomal) protein 2 and high-mobility group box 2. UniProt names the protein high mobility group protein B2, and it belongs to the HMGB family.
Mouse and rat both carry an ortholog named Hmgb2. HMGB2 is a member of the HMGB family, whose proteins are chromatin-associated and ubiquitous in the nucleus of higher eukaryotic cells. Check the datasheet of any product for its validated reactivity.
Other HMGB family members that bind and bend DNA and take part in chromatin biology.
Gene and protein annotations from HGNC, NCBI Gene and UniProt P26583; product specifications from Assay Genie datasheets.