Twist Transcription Factor 2 (TWIST2)

Basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factors have been implicated in cell lineage determination and differentiation. The protein encoded by this gene is a bHLH transcription factor and shares similarity with another bHLH transcription factor, Twist. It is thought that during osteoblast development this protein may inhibit osteoblast maturation and maintain cells in a preosteoblast phenotype. Dermo1 was expressed at a low level in the sclerotome and dermatome of the somites and in the limb buds at day 10.5 postcoitum (pc), and it accumulated predominantly in the dermatome, prevertebrae, and the derivatives of the branchial arches by day 13.5 pc. As differentiation of prechondrial cells proceeded, Dermo1 expression became restricted to the perichondrium.