CLOCK

Also known as KAT13D, bHLHe8, clock circadian regulator

CLOCK (backronym for circadian locomotor output cycles kaput) is a gene encoding a basic helix-loop-helix-PAS transcription factor that is known to affect both the persistence and period of circadian rhythms.

Gene data

CLOCK

Name: clock circadian regulator
Type: protein-coding
Position: 55,427,903–55,547,491 (−)
Aliases: KAT13D, bHLHe8
Ensembl: ENSG00000134852
RefSeq RNA: NM_001267843.2, NM_004898.4, XM_005265787.3, XM_011534410.3, XM_011534411.3
RefSeq protein: NP_001254772.1, NP_004889.1, XP_005265844.1, XP_011532712.1, XP_011532713.1

The protein encoded by this gene plays a central role in the regulation of circadian rhythms. The protein encodes a transcription factor of the basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) family and contains DNA binding histone acetyltransferase activity. The encoded protein forms a heterodimer with ARNTL (BMAL1) that binds E-box enhancer elements upstream of Period (PER1, PER2, PER3) and Cryptochrome (CRY1, CRY2) genes and activates transcription of these genes. PER and CRY proteins heterodimerize and repress their own transcription by interacting in a feedback loop with CLOCK/ARNTL complexes. Polymorphisms in this gene may be associated with behavioral changes in certain populations and with obesity and metabolic syndrome. Alternative splicing results in multiple transcript variants. [provided by RefSeq, Jan 2014].

Gene Ontology

Biological process

Article

15 sections

Contents

Discovery
Function
Role in other feedback loops
Evolution
Phylogeny
Variant allele forms
Role in mammalian evolution
Mutants
''Drosophila''
Mice
Observed effects
See also
References
Further reading
External links

Research shows that the gene plays a major role as an activator of downstream elements in the pathway critical to the generation of circadian rhythms.