Ovarian Tumor Suppressor Candidate 2 (OVCA2)

A tumor suppressor locus on chromosome 17p distinct from the TP53 gene is absent from brain, breast, lung, and ovarian tumors. Schultz et al. (1996) identified a minimum region of allelic loss on chromosome 17p13.3 in a cohort of ovarian tumors and, using allelic loss mapping and positional cloning, identified 2 genes, OVCA1 (DPH1) and OVCA2, that map within this region. The deduced 227-amino acid OVCA2 protein shares 76% identity over 104 amino acids with the rat protein. Northern blot analysis detected a 1.1-kb OVCA2 transcript in all tissues tested. Expression of OVCA1 and OVCA2 was reduced or undetectable in ovarian tumor tissue and cell lines compared with normal ovarian epithelial cells.OVCA2 gene contains 2 exons, 1 of which is derived from the intron between exons 12 and 13 of the OVCA1 gene.