Speckled Like Pattern In The Germinal Center (SLIP-GC)

SLIP-GC, with expression limited to a few tissues. It lacks homology to any known proteins, indicating that it may belong to a novel family of GTPases. SLIP-GC is expressed in germinal center B cells and in lymphomas derived from germinal center B cells such as large diffuse B cell lymphomas. SLIP-GC is expressed in lymphomas that express activation-induced deaminase (AID) and that likely undergo somatic hypermutation. Reduction of SLIP-GC levels in the Burkitt lymphoma cell line Raji and in non-Hodgkin lymphoma cell lines resulted in an increase in DNA breaks and apoptosis that was AID-dependent, as simultaneous reduction of AID abrogated the deleterious effects of SLIP-GC reduction. SLIP-GC is a replication-related protein in germinal center B cells whose reduction is toxic to cells through an AID-dependent mechanism.