Derlin 2 (DERL2)

Proteins that are unfolded or misfolded in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) must be refolded or degraded to maintain the homeostasis of the ER. DERL2 is involved in the degradation of misfolded glycoproteins in the ER. The deduced protein contains 239 amino acids. Northern blot analysis of normal liver detected a primary transcript of about 1.2 kb and a minor transcript of about 4.9 kb. F-LANa was variably expressed in mouse heart, liver, spleen, lung, kidney, brain and stomach but not skeletal muscle.Northern blot analysis detected ubiquitous DERL2 expression. DERL2 appeared to be a 4-transmembrane protein with its N and C termini facing the cytosol.Derl2 mRNA was induced in response to ER stress in mouse embryonic fibroblasts. Induction of Derl2 was greatly attenuated in cells lacking Ire1-alpha (ERN1) or Xbp1.