Cloning and characterization of a novel erythroid cell-derived CNC family transcription factor heterodimerizing with the small Maf family proteins

The chicken β-globin enhancer is critical for the tissue- and developmental stage-specific expression of the β-globin genes. This enhancer contains two indispensable cis elements, one containing two GATA sites and the other containing an NF-E2 site. To identify the putative transcription factor acting through the NF-E2 motif in the chicken β-globin enhancer, we screened chicken cDNA libraries with a mouse p45 NF-E2 cDNA probe and isolated cDNA clones which encode a protein of 582 amino acid residues. This protein contains a region that includes the basic region-leucine zipper domain which is well conserved among members of the CNC family proteins (Cap 'n' collar, p45 NF-E2, LCR-F1, Nrf1, and Nrf2). Hence, we named this protein ECH (erythroid cell-derived protein with CNC homology). ECH is expressed abundantly in cultured erythroid cells undergoing terminal differentiation, peripheral erythrocytes, and some nonhematopoietic tissues. Since most of the cDNA clones obtained from the chicken erythrocyte cDNA library encoded ECH, ECH is likely the predominant CNC family protein present in avian peripheral erythrocytes. Like p45 NF-E2, ECH can heterodimerize with any of the small Maf family proteins and bind the NF-E2 site as a heterodimer in vitro. In a transfection assay, ECH transactivates transcription depending on the presence of NF-E2 sites on the reporter gene plasmid. These results indicate that ECH is likely a key regulator of avian erythropoiesis.