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YB-1 (YBX1) does not bind to Y/CCAAT boxes in vivo

Oncogene volume 32, pages 4189–4190 (2013)Cite this article

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YB-1 (Y box binding protein-1) is an oncogene, overexpressed in cancers and believed to mediate drug resistance.1 It was originally identified as one of the proteins binding to the Y/CCAAT box, and later shown to bind to multiple, normal and altered, nucleic acids (RNA and DNA). The YB-1 role in the control of mRNA biology—stability, splicing, translation—is established, while its function as a transcriptional activator is more controversial, particularly concerning sequence-specific DNA-binding. The Y/CCAAT is a key transcriptional element, found vastly overepresented in promoters of ‘cancer’ genes, based on de novo motif discovery of ‘words’ enriched in thousands of tumor profilings.2 Hence, establishing which transcription factor binds and activates this element is relevant for the mechanisms of transformation: given the YB-1 oncogenic activity, one could hypothesize that YB-1 is the Y/CCAAT-binding entity in tumors.

To answer to the relevant question as to which is the Y/CCAAT-binding entity activating ‘cancer’ genes, one should most likely turn to NF-Y, a Y/CCAAT-box binding protein with an exquisite specificity for the same sequence identified in tumor profilings:2, 4 indeed, the very same Y/CCAAT logo clearly emerged from ChIP-Seq experiments with antibodies against NF-Y subunits.5, 6

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  1. Dipartimento di Bioscienze, Università degli Studi di Milano, Via Celoria 26, Milano, Italy

    D Dolfini & R Mantovani

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  1. D Dolfini
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  2. R Mantovani
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Correspondence to R Mantovani.

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Dolfini, D., Mantovani, R. YB-1 (YBX1) does not bind to Y/CCAAT boxes in vivo. Oncogene 32, 4189–4190 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1038/onc.2012.521

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