InnateDB: Systems Biology of the Innate Immune Response

Homo sapiens Protein: MAEL

Summary

InnateDB Protein

IDBP-104525.7

Last Modified

2014-10-13 [Report errors or provide feedback]

Gene Symbol

MAEL

Protein Name

maelstrom homolog (Drosophila)

Synonyms

Species

Homo sapiens

Ensembl Protein

ENSP00000356844

InnateDB Gene

IDBG-104521 (MAEL)

Protein Structure

UniProt Annotation

Function

Plays a central role during spermatogenesis by repressing transposable elements and preventing their mobilization, which is essential for the germline integrity. Acts via the piRNA metabolic process, which mediates the repression of transposable elements during meiosis by forming complexes composed of piRNAs and Piwi proteins and governs the methylation and subsequent repression of transposons. Its association with piP- bodies suggests a participation in the secondary piRNAs metabolic process. Required for the localization of germ-cell factors to the meiotic nuage (By similarity). {ECO:0000250}.

Subcellular Localization

Cytoplasm. Nucleus. Note=Component of the meiotic nuage, also named P granule, a germ-cell-specific organelle required to repress transposon activity during meiosis. Specifically localizes to piP-bodies, a subset of the nuage which contains secondary piRNAs (By similarity). {ECO:0000250}.

Disease Associations

Tissue Specificity

Testis-specific. Expressed in various cancer cell lines, probably due to demethylation of its promoter. {ECO:0000269PubMed:19693694, ECO:0000269Ref.1}.

Comments

Interactions

Number of Interactions

This gene and/or its encoded proteins are associated with 2 experimentally validated interaction(s) in this database.
They are also associated with 6 interaction(s) predicted by orthology.

Experimentally validated
Total	2 [view]
Protein-Protein	2 [view]
Protein-DNA	0
Protein-RNA	0
DNA-DNA	0
RNA-RNA	0
DNA-RNA	0

Predicted by orthology
Total	6 [view]

Gene Ontology

Molecular Function

Accession	GO Term
GO:0003677	DNA binding
GO:0005515	protein binding

Biological Process

GO:0007275	multicellular organismal development
GO:0007283	spermatogenesis
GO:0030154	cell differentiation
GO:0031047	gene silencing by RNA
GO:0034587	piRNA metabolic process
GO:0043046	DNA methylation involved in gamete generation