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FLASH GENE
Symbol SOX2 contributors: mct/shn - updated : 01-03-2018
HGNC name SRY (sex determining region Y)-box 2
HGNC id 11195
Corresponding disease
ANOP3 anophthalmos, 3, syndromic
Location 3q26.33      Physical location : 181.429.721 - 181.432.221
Synonym name
  • transcription factor SOX2
  • SRY-related HMG-box gene 2
  • transcription factor SOX2
  • Synonym symbol(s) MGC2413, MCOPS3
    DNA
    TYPE functioning gene
    STRUCTURE 2.51 kb     1 Exon(s)
    10 Kb 5' upstream gene genomic sequence study
    MAPPING cloned Y linked N status confirmed
    Map cen - D3S3662 - D3S1232 - SOX2 - D3S1618 - D3S3609 - qter
    RNA
    TRANSCRIPTS type messenger
    identificationnb exonstypebpproduct
    ProteinkDaAAspecific expressionYearPubmed
    1 - 2518 - 317 - 2008 18388306
    EXPRESSION
    Type widely
       expressed in (based on citations)
    organ(s)
    SystemOrgan level 1Organ level 2Organ level 3Organ level 4LevelPubmedSpeciesStageRna symbol
    Digestiveesophagus   highly
    Hearing/Equilibriumear   highly
    Nervousbrainhindbraincerebellum highly Homo sapiensAdult
     brainhindbraincerebellum  Homo sapiensAdult
    Visualeye   highly
    tissue
    SystemTissueTissue level 1Tissue level 2LevelPubmedSpeciesStageRna symbol
    Epithelialbarrier liningneuroepithelium  
    cells
    SystemCellPubmedSpeciesStageRna symbol
    NervousPurkinje cell Homo sapiens
    cell lineage
    cell lines
    fluid/secretion
    at STAGE
    physiological period fetal, pregnancy
    Text
  • developing CNS, lens inducing beta and delta crystallin expression, inner cell mass primitive ectoderm, developing gonad
  • expressed in neural progenitor populations throughout the developing and adult central nervous system and is necessary to maintain their progenitor identity
  • PROTEIN
    PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
    STRUCTURE
    motifs/domains
  • an high mobility group (HMG) domain
  • a transactivation domain in the carboxyl terminus (transcription activation)
  • a SOX2 regulatory region 2 (SRR2)and a DNA nuclear targeting sequence
  • (SRR2/DTS working as an ES cell-specific DTS)
    HOMOLOGY
    interspecies ortholog to Sox2, Mus musculus
    ortholog to Sox2, Rattus norvegicus
    ortholog to sox2, Danio rerio
    ortholog to SOX2, Pan troglodytes
    Homologene
    FAMILY
  • SRY-related HMG box family of transcription factors
  • CATEGORY transcription factor
    SUBCELLULAR LOCALIZATION     intracellular
    intracellular,nucleus,chromatin/chromosome
    basic FUNCTION
  • can inhibit beta-catenin-driven reporter gene expression
  • modulator of LINE retroposons promoter activity
  • repressing osteopontin
  • playing crucial and diverse roles in the development, specification, and maintenance of sensory cells within the cochlea
  • dose-dependent regulator of retinal neural progenitor competence
  • centrally situated in inner ear development functioning both as a node, receiving signals from several inputs, including Notch signaling, and as a junction, directing signals to different effectors that apparently play unique roles in sensory development
  • essential roles in early development and are required for the propagation of undifferentiated embryonic stem (ES) cells in culture (
  • regulation of SOX2 dosage is critical for temporal and spatial regulation of retinal progenitor cell differentiation (
  • necessary for the normal development and function of the hypothalamo-pituitary and reproductive axes (
  • role in MUC5AC transcription and in the development of mucinous cancers (
  • plays important roles in growth inhibition through cell-cycle arrest and apoptosis in gastric epithelial cells (
  • important for two crucial processes in lung development: branching morphogenesis and epithelial cell differentiation
  • promotes cell proliferation and tumorigenesis by facilitating the G(1)/S transition and through its transcription regulation of the CCND1 gene in breast cancer cells (
  • necessary for normal esophageal squamous development, promotes differentiation and proliferation of basal tracheal cells and cooperates in induction of pluripotent stem cells
  • lineage-survival oncogene in lung and esophageal squamous cell carcinomas
  • modulating alternative splicing in transitional cell carcinoma, by functioning as a splicing factor
  • may have an important role in adult human Müller stem cells differentiation into retinal neurons in vitro (
  • SOX2 and CHD7 were known to be involved in neural development, and create a SOX2-CHD7-regulated network
  • is required for osteosarcoma cell self renewal, and SOX2 antagonizes the pro-differentiation WNT pathway that can in turn reduce SOX2 expression
  • key player in the maintenance of pluripotency and "stemness"
  • POU5F1, SOX2, and NANOG cooperate with a wide array of cofactors to orchestrate an embryonic stem (ES) cell-specific gene expression program that forms the molecular basis of pluripotency
  • directly regulates a previously unidentified long-range forebrain enhancer to activate SIX3 expression in the rostral diencephalon
  • SOX2 and its close relative SOX3 have differentiation functions in oligodendrocytes
  • SOX2 and SOX3 proteins are functionally equivalent
  • possible role for SOX1-OT in regulating SOX1 expression, as previously observed for SOX2
  • SOX2 promotes breast cancer brain metastasis (BCBM) by upregulating the expression of FSCN1 and HBEGF
  • CELLULAR PROCESS nucleotide, transcription, regulation
    PHYSIOLOGICAL PROCESS development
    PATHWAY
    metabolism
    signaling
  • SOX2-FN1 axis is a key pathway in mediating the migration and invasion of ovarian cancer cells
  • a component
    INTERACTION
    DNA
  • binding to sequence-like FGF4 enhancer
  • binds to a conserved promoter region of miR-302 (
  • RNA RNA-binding capability (Tung 2010)
    small molecule
    protein
  • POU2F1, POU5F1
  • OTX2 (coordinate RAX expression in eye development, providing molecular linkages among the genes responsible for ocular malformation)
  • LHX3 (SOX2 is able to activate transcription of the LHX3 promoter)
  • paired box 6, Pax6 (
  • Oct1 and Hoxb1 (
  • binds and activates transcription of the LHX3 proximal promoter in vitro (
  • beta-catenin as the transcription partner for SOX2 and act in synergy in the transcription regulation of CCND1 in breast cancer cells (
  • EYA1
  • ZNF281 directly activate NANOG expression by binding to a site in the promoter in very close proximity to the POU5F1 and SOX2 binding sites
  • SALL1 is expressed in a differentiation-dependent manner and physically interacts with NANOG and SOX2, two components of the core pluripotency network
  • SOX2 and CHD7 physically interact, have overlapping genome-wide binding sites and regulate a set of common target genes including JAG1, GLI3 and MYCN
  • coupled with CHD7 cooperatively regulate target genes that are essential during neural stem cell development
  • connection between SOX2 and BMI1 in maintaining self-renewal and identify BMI1 as a key mediator of SOX2 function
  • involved in the synergistic activation of NANOG, that requires a multisubunit stem cell coactivator complex (SCC)
  • PARP1 regulates SOX2 protein activity (regulation of SOX2 activity by PARP1 is critical for efficient generation of induced pluripotent stem cells)
  • cooperates with POU5F1 to activate downstream target genes by binding to Oct-Sox enhancers
  • SOX2 directly transactivates the ASXL1 promoter, and ASXL1 may be a direct target of SOX2 and may play a role in maintaining the pluripotency of stem cells
  • novel regulatory relationship between the NTRK3 gene and the transcription factor SOX2
  • OTX2 prevents the presumptive RPE region from forming the neural retina (NR) by repressing the expression of both FGF8 and SOX2 which induce the NR cell fate
  • directly up-regulates the expression of BIRC5, which inhibits the mitochondria-dependent apoptotic pathway in NSCs (neural stem cells)
  • genomic redistribution of POU5F1 by alternative partnering with SOX2 and SOX17 is a fundamental regulatory event of endodermal specification
  • fine balance between SOX2 and CDX2 expression in the gastrointestinal tract is essential for proper development and that ectopic expression of SOX2 may lead to malformations of the gut
  • SIX3 is a SOX2 transcriptional target
  • SOX2 regulated the transcription of PQBP1 in neural stem progenitor cells (NSPCs)
  • direct physical interaction between NANOG and SOX2 regulates embryonic stem cell self-renewal
  • CUL5 interacts extensively with ELOB/ELOC via residues that are highly conserved in CUL2 but not in other cullins, and also interacts with SOCS2, but via only two residues, Pro184 and Arg186, which are located in the C-terminal part of the SOCS box called the CUL5 box
  • IL6 induced the lineage commitment and stemness loss in multipotent cells by decreasing SOX2 expression
  • ACTL6A could interact with NANOG and SOX2 and promote NANOG binding to pluripotency genes such as POU5F1 and SOX2
  • MSX2 controls mesendoderm lineage commitment by simultaneous suppression of SOX2 and induction of NODAL expression through direct binding and activation of the NODAL promoter
  • binding between DDX17 and SOX2, although this interaction was largely restricted to reporter responsive (RR) cells
  • NOS1 is transported into the nucleus and interacted with SOX2 to form a NOS1-SOX2 complex in neurons at the early stage following glutamate stimulation
  • NACC1 coordinates differentiation by activating POU5F1 and inhibiting both SOX2 and TCF3
  • novel roles for PCGF6 in directly regulating POU5F1, NANOG, SOX2, and LIN28A expression to maintain ESC identity
  • SOX2 and LEF1 interact with PITX2 to regulate incisor development and stem cell renewal
  • MELK serves a key role in cancer stem cells (CSCs) through the regulation of SOX2
  • SOX2 mediates the expression of HBEGF and FSCN1 by activating AKT1 and CTNNB1 signaling pathways
  • SOX2-SLC7A11 regulatory axis that confers resistance to ferroptosis in lung cancer stem-like cells
  • ZBTB38 is essential for early embryonic development via the suppression of NANOG and SOX2 expression
  • cell & other
    REGULATION
    induced by chordin
    repressed by BMP4
    miR-145 (
    Phosphorylated by by the PI3K/AKT pathway, which enhances Sox2 activity by stabilizing SOX2 protein levels
    ASSOCIATED DISORDERS
    corresponding disease(s) ANOP3
    Other morbid association(s)
    TypeGene ModificationChromosome rearrangementProtein expressionProtein Function
    constitutional     --low  
    result in precocious hair cell differentiation and an over production of inner hair cells and these effects are likely mediated through an antagonistic interaction between SOX2 and ATOH1
    tumoral   amplification    
    in small-cell lung cancer
    Susceptibility
    Variant & Polymorphism
    Candidate gene
    Marker
    Therapy target
    SystemTypeDisorderPubmed
    cancerreproductiveovary
    offers crucial molecular insights and promises to develop putative candidate therapeutic interventions in women with ovarian cancer
    cancerbone 
    novel therapeutic strategies based on inhibiting SOX2 or enhancing Wnt signaling for the treatment of osteosarcomas
    ANIMAL & CELL MODELS
  • compound Sox2(beta-geo/DeltaENH) heterozygote mice show important cerebral malformations, with parenchymal loss and ventricle enlargement, and L-dopa-rescuable circling behaviour and epilepsy (
  • absence in Lcc/Lcc mice or reduced expression in YYsb/Ysb mice of the transcription factor SOX2 lead to hearing and balance impairment (
  • Mice heterozygous for a targeted disruption of Sox2 showed abnormal anterior pituitary development with reduced levels of growth hormone, luteinizing hormone, and thyroid-stimulating hormone (
  • SOX2-overexpressing cells exhibit cell-cycle arrest and apoptosis and may be related to gastric carcinogenesis and poor prognosis (
  • knockdown of Sox2 in Human embryonic stem cells results in reduced expression of several key stem cell factors, including Oct4 and Nanog (
  • SOX2 silencing caused human Müller stem cells to rapidly adopt a neural-like morphology and induced apoptosis, suggesting a crucial role of this factor on human Müller stem cells survival in vitro (