Histone Deacetylase 8 (HDAC8)

Histones play a critical role in transcriptional regulation, cell cycle progression, and developmental events. Histone acetylation/deacetylation alters chromosome structure and affects transcription factor access to DNA. The protein encoded by this gene belongs to class I of the histone deacetylase/acuc/apha family. It has histone deacetylase activity and represses transcription when tethered to a promoter.HDAC8 shares 54% sequence similarity with HDAC1 and HDAC2 and 39% similarity with HDAC3, making it a class I HDAC. Northern blot analysis detected HDAC8 transcripts of approximately 2.0 and 2.4 kb in all normal tissues tested, with strongest expression in brain, unlike other class I HDACs, and in cancer cell lines. Immunofluorescence analysis indicated a nuclear localization with possible exclusion from the nucleolus.