POU-domain proteins: structure and function of developmental regulators.

POU-domain proteins are a group of developmental regulators found in organisms as distant as worm and man. The sequence conservation of the POU-domain has allowed the characterization of increasing numbers of proteins containing the domain, many of which act to control the generation and maintenance of differentiated cell phenotypes in organs as diverse as skin and brain. Analysis of the means by which POU-domain proteins regulate transcription has led to a further understanding of how this group initiates specific developmental programs.