ZNF312, also known as Fezf2 or Fez-like, is a zinc finger protein that acts as a transcriptional repressor during the development of corticospinal motor neurons and other subcerebral projection neurons. ZNF312 is expressed by early progenitor cells in the ventricular zone. It regulates the fate choice of subcortical projection neurons in the developing cerebral cortex. This protein is expressed in the developing cortical plate during early embryonic development. During late embryonic development and early postnatal development, ZNF312 expression disappears from the cortical progenitors and becomes restricted to the subplate nad the prospective layer V and VI pyramidal neurons.
Background References
1. Levkowitz G et al. Zinc finger protein too few controls the development of monoaminergic neurons. Nat Neurosci 6:28-33 (2003).
2. Yang Z et al. A zebrafish forebrain-specific zinc finger gene can induce ectopic dlx2 and dlx6 expression. Dev Biol 231:138-148 (2001).
Sequence Similarity
Belongs to the krueppel C2H2-type zinc-finger protein family.