biology

MTA2

MTA2 is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand MTA2 rather than just read about it. In short: Metastasis-associated protein MTA2 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the MTA2 gene. MTA2 is the second member of the MTA family of genes.

Key takeaways

MTA2 belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect MTA2 to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of MTA2 from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Metastasis-associated protein MTA2 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the MTA2 gene. MTA2 is the second member of the MTA family of genes. MTA2 protein localizes in the nucleus and is a component of the nucleosome remodeling and the deacetylation complex (NuRD). Similar to the founding family member MTA1, MTA2 functions as a chromatin remodeling factor and regulates gene expression. MTA2 is overexpressed in human cancer and its dysregulated level correlates well with cancer invasiveness and aggressive phenotypes.

Discovery MTA2 was initially recognized as an MTA1 like 1 gene, named MTA1-L1, from a large scale sequencing of randomly selected clones from human cDNA libraries in 1999. Clues about the role of MTA2 in gene expression came from the association of MTA2 polypeptides in the NuRD complex in a proteomic study This was followed by targeted cloning of murine Mta2 in 2001.

Gene and spliced variants MTA2 is localized on chromosome 11q12-q13.1 in human and on 19B in mice. The 8.6-kb long human MTA2 gene contains 20 exons and seven transcripts inclusive of three protein-coding transcripts but predicted to code for two polypeptides of 688 amino acids and 495 amino acids. The remaining four MTA2 transcripts are non-coding RNA transcripts ranging from 532-bp to 627-bp. The murine Mta2 consists of a 3.1-kb protein-coding transcript to code a protein of 668 amino acids, and five non-coding RNAs transcripts, ranging from 620-bp to 839-bp.

Structure Amino acid sequence of MTA2 shares 68.2% homology with MTA1's sequence. MTA2 domains include, a BAH (Bromo-Adjacent Homology), an ELM2 domain (egl-27 and MTA1 homology), a SANT domain (SWI, ADA2, N-CoR, TFIIIB-B), and a GATA-like zinc finger. MTA2 is acetylated at lysine 152 within the BAH domain

Function This gene encodes a protein that has been identified as a component of NuRD, a nucleosome remodeling deacetylase complex identified in the nucleus of human cells. It shows a very broad expression pattern and is strongly expressed in many tissues. It may represent one member of a small gene family that encode different but related proteins involved either directly or indirectly in transcriptional regulation. Their indirect effects on transcriptional regulation may include chromatin remodeling. MTA2 inhibits estrogen receptor-transactivation functions, and participates in the development of hormones independent of breast cancer cells. The MTA2 participate in the circadian rhythm through CLOCK-BMAL1 complex. MTA2 inhibits the expression of target genes owing to its ability to interact with chromatin remodeling complexes, and modulates pathways involved in cellular functions, including invasion, apoptosis, epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition, and growth of normal and cancer cells

Regulation Expression of MTA2 is stimulated by Sp1 transcription factor and repressed by Kaiso. Growth regulatory activity of MTA2 is modulated through its acetylation by histone acetylase p300 [12]. The expression of MTA2 is inhibited by the Rho GDIa in breast cancer cells and by human β-defensins in colon cancer cells. MicroRNAs-146a and miR-34a also regulate the levels of MTA2 mRNA through post-transcriptional mechanism.

Targets MTA2 deacetylates the estrogen receptor alpha and p53 and inhibits their transactivation functions. MTA2 represses the expression of E-cadherin in non-small-cell lung cancer cells. but stimulates the expression of IL-11 in gastric cancer cells. The MTA2-containing chromatin remodeling complex targets CLOCK-BMAL1 complex.

Interactions MTA2 has been shown to interact with:

Notes

References

External links MTA2+protein,+human at the U.S. National Library of Medicine Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) This article incorporates text from the United States National Library of Medicine, which is in the public domain.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with MTA2

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what MTA2 claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to MTA2 before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about MTA2 ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of MTA2

In research: MTA2 appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses MTA2 in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: MTA2 is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Genes on human chromosome 11, Transcription factors, Wikipedia articles with corresponding academic peer reviewed articles, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for MTA2 outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study MTA2 in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what MTA2 means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain MTA2 out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is MTA2 in simple terms?

Metastasis-associated protein MTA2 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the MTA2 gene. MTA2 is the second member of the MTA family of genes.

Why does MTA2 matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study MTA2?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on MTA2.