Thymosin β-NB Is the Human Isoform of Rat Thymosin β15

:  Thymosin β15 is a small actin‐binding protein upregulated in highly metastatic rat prostate cancer cells, relative to low metastatic cells. We have previously established an important role for thymosin β15 as a diagnostic marker in human prostate cancer, with potential as a prognostic indicator....

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 2007-09, Vol.1112 (1), p.286-296
Main Authors: BANYARD, JACQUELINE, HUTCHINSON, LLOYD M., ZETTER, BRUCE R.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
prostate cancer
thymosin NB
thymosin β15
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Summary::  Thymosin β15 is a small actin‐binding protein upregulated in highly metastatic rat prostate cancer cells, relative to low metastatic cells. We have previously established an important role for thymosin β15 as a diagnostic marker in human prostate cancer, with potential as a prognostic indicator. We here review the data supporting increased thymosin β15 expression in other cancer types, including breast, brain, and lung. Human NB thymosin β is a β‐thymosin originally found in neuroblastoma. New data demonstrate that NB thymosin β represents the human homolog of rat thymosin β15; thus we suggest classification as human thymosin β15. In addition to the previously described gene, thymosin β15a, we report the discovery of a new isoform of human thymosin β15, thymosin β15b, which is transcribed from an independent gene on human chromosome X. The gene structure of thymosin β15a and β15b is conserved and the isoforms show 87% identity across the nucleotide sequence. Across the coding sequence the nucleotide differences are silent, resulting in identical proteins. Other thymosin family members have recently been shown to exert potent clinical effects. The functional data available for thymosin β15, combined with the tumor expression pattern, suggest that thymosin β15 may play an important role in tumor development and progression in addition to its value as a biomarker in prostate cancer.
ISSN:0077-8923
1749-6632
DOI:10.1196/annals.1415.024