PROSITE documentation PDOC51213ELK domain profile
Homeobox genes, which encode homeodomain (HD) (see <PDOC00027>) transcription factors, are known to be key regulators of both plant and animal development. In plants homeobox genes are divided into several groups by sequences, one of which is the KNOX (for knotted1-type homeobox) family. Proteins of this family share other conserved domains, the KNOX domain and ELK domain, which is immediately upstream of the HD. The ELK domain spans ~21 amino acids and was dubbed for a highly conserved series of Glu, Leu, and Lys amino acids. It could function as a nuclear localization signal. The ELK domain also is considered to act as a protein-protein interaction domain, but the precise role of this domain has not been determined [1,2,3,4].
The ELK domain contains repeating hydrophobic residues and has been predicted to form an amphipathic helix [1].
Some proteins known to contain an ELK domain are listed below:
- Maize homeotic protein knotted-1 (KN-1).
- Maize homeobox protein rough sheath 1 (RS1).
- Apple homeobox protein knotted-1-like 1 and 2 (KNAP1 and KNAP2).
- Arabidopsis thaliana homeobox protein SHOOT MERISTEMLESS (STM).
- Tobacco KNOTTED1-type homeodomain proteins NTH1, NTH15 and NTH23.
- Rice KNOX family class 2 homeodomain proteins HOS58, HOS59 and HOS66.
The profile we developed covers the entire ELK domain.
Last update:May 2006 / First entry.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PROSITE method (with tools and information) covered by this documentation:
| 1 | Authors | Kerstetter R. Vollbrecht E. Lowe B. Veit B. Yamaguchi J. Hake S. |
| Title | Sequence analysis and expression patterns divide the maize knotted1-like homeobox genes into two classes. | |
| Source | Plant Cell 6:1877-1887(1994). | |
| PubMed ID | 7866030 | |
| DOI | 10.1105/tpc.6.12.1877 |
| 2 | Authors | Sakamoto T. Nishimura A. Tamaoki M. Kuba M. Tanaka H. Iwahori S. Matsuoka M. |
| Title | The conserved KNOX domain mediates specificity of tobacco KNOTTED1-type homeodomain proteins. | |
| Source | Plant Cell 11:1419-1432(1999). | |
| PubMed ID | 10449577 |
| 3 | Authors | Nagasaki H. Sakamoto T. Sato Y. Matsuoka M. |
| Title | Functional analysis of the conserved domains of a rice KNOX homeodomain protein, OSH15. | |
| Source | Plant Cell 13:2085-2098(2001). | |
| PubMed ID | 11549765 |
| 4 | Authors | Ito Y. Hirochika H. Kurata N. |
| Title | Organ-specific alternative transcripts of KNOX family class 2 homeobox genes of rice. | |
| Source | Gene 288:41-47(2002). | |
| PubMed ID | 12034492 |
PROSITE is copyrighted by the SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics and distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) License, see prosite_license.html.
View entry in original PROSITE document format
View entry in raw text format (no links)