Desbarats L, Schneider A, Müller D, Bürgin A, Eilers M
Zentrum für Molekulare Biologie Heidelberg (ZMBH), Germany.
Experientia. 1996 Dec 15;52(12):1123-9. doi: 10.1007/BF01952111.
c-myc was discovered as the cellular homologue of the transduced oncogene of several avian retroviruses. The gene encodes a transcription factor, which forms a heteromeric protein complex with a partner protein termed Max. In mammalian cells, Myc is a central regulator of cell proliferation and links external signals to the cell cycle machinery. Myc also induces cells to undergo apoptosis, unless specific signals provided either by cytokines or by oncogenes block the apoptotic pathway. Recent progress sheds light both on the factors regulating the function and expression of Myc and on the downstream targets in the cell cycle. Together, these findings suggest the existence of a novel signal transduction pathway regulating both apoptosis and proliferation.
c-myc最初被发现是几种禽逆转录病毒转导癌基因的细胞同源物。该基因编码一种转录因子，它与一种名为Max的伴侣蛋白形成异源蛋白复合物。在哺乳动物细胞中，Myc是细胞增殖的核心调节因子，并将外部信号与细胞周期机制联系起来。Myc还诱导细胞发生凋亡，除非细胞因子或癌基因提供的特定信号阻断凋亡途径。最近的研究进展揭示了调节Myc功能和表达的因素以及细胞周期中的下游靶点。这些发现共同表明存在一种调节凋亡和增殖的新型信号转导途径。
