Homeodomain Interacting Protein Kinase 2 (HIPK2)

HIPK2 is a conserved serine/threonine nuclear kinase that interacts with homeodomain transcription factors.Hipk2 mRNA expression is detectable in day-15 mouse embryos and is strong in day-17 mouse embryos. The predicted 1,198-amino acid HIPK2 protein is 96% identical to the mouse protein and has a CD95-binding site between residues 754 and 899. Northern and dot blot analyses revealed weak but ubiquitous expression of an 11.0-kb transcript that was strongest in neuronal tissue. A 7.8-kb transcript was also detected in uterus, and a strong 1.4-kb transcript was found in pancreas. Confocal microscopy demonstrated a nuclear dot localization even with a C-terminal deletion or a kinase-defective mutant. HIPK2 expressed in cells did not directly associate with CD95 or TNFR1, but did associate with TRADD