AlkB, Alkylation Repair Homolog 5 (ALKBH5)

By database analysis to identify sequences similar to ABH genes, followed by PCR of a testis cDNA library, Tsujikawa et al. (2007) cloned ALKBH5, which they called ABH5. The deduced 458-amino acid protein has a C-terminal AlkB homology domain that is predicted to function as a 2-oxoglutarate- and Fe(II)-dependent oxygenase domain. Quantitative real-time PCR detected variable ABH5 expression in all 16 tissues examined, with highest expression in lung, followed by testis, pancreas, spleen, and ovary. Fluorescence-tagged ABH5 was expressed in the cytoplasm and nucleus of transfected HeLa cells. Cytoplasmic ABH5 showed both a diffuse and punctate distribution.Hartz (2010) mapped the ALKBH5 gene to chromosome 17p11.2 based on an alignment of the ALKBH5 sequence with the genomic sequence (GRCh37).