Background information
DIP2A, also known as DIP2, is a 1571 amino acid nuclear protein. It is one of three human homologs (DIP2A, DIP2B and DIP2C) of the Drosophila dip2 (disconnected-interacting protein 2) protein. In Drosophila, dip2 interacts with disco, a protein required for neuronal connections in the visual systems of larvae and adults. The closest vertebrate homologs to disco are the basonuclin genes. In mice, DIP2 homologs show restricted expression to the brain. This suggests that, similar to the function of Drosophila dip2, vertebrate DIP2 homologs may play a role in the development of the nervous system. Expressed ubiquitously with highest expression in the brain, DIP2A is thought to function in signaling throughout the central nervous system by providing positional clues for axon patterning and pathfinding. Four isoforms of DIP2A exist due to alternative splicing events.
