Zinc Finger Protein 177 (ZNF177)

ZNF177 gene spans 58.7 kb and includes 9 exons, the last of which encodes the zinc finger motifs.ZNF177 occurs at low levels in several cell types.ZNF177 gene incorporates Alu, L1, and HERV segments into the 5-prime untranslated region (UTR) of transcripts. As is the case of the HERV element from which exon 2 is derived, both the Alu and L1 elements integrated in the opposite transcriptional direction relative to ZNF177. Alu and L1 sequences altered both the RNA and protein levels of reporter genes by increasing transcriptional efficiency while decreasing translational efficiency, suggesting that the Alu-L1 sequence in the 5-prime UTR of ZNF177 likely modulates gene expression by increasing transcription while impeding translation.