The OTULIN gene provides instructions for making a protein that helps regulate inflammation, which is part of the body’s early immune response to foreign invaders. Inflammation occurs when the immune system sends signaling molecules and white blood cells to a site of injury or disease to fight the invaders and facilitate tissue repair. Inflammation can be turned on by a cellular process called ubiquitination, in which molecules called ubiquitin are attached to certain proteins. When foreign invaders are recognized, chains of ubiquitin molecules linked end-to-end, called linear ubiquitin chains, are attached to particular proteins. The addition of these chains stimulates signaling pathways that result in inflammation. Once the infection is under control, the body stops the inflammatory response to prevent damage to its own cells and tissues. The OTULIN protein helps control inflammation by removing linear ubiquitin chains.
In addition to inflammation, the OTULIN protein is thought to be involved in regulating development before birth and controlling cell death. Researchers are working to understand the protein’s role in these processes.
Other Names
AIPDS; deubiquitinating enzyme otulin; FAM105B; family with sequence similarity 105, member B; FLJ34884; GUM; OTU domain-containing deubiquitinase with linear linkage specificity; ubiquitin thioesterase Gumby; ubiquitin thioesterase otulin
Related Genetics Topics
Identifiers
- NCBI Gene: 90268
- OMIM: 615712
Source: MedlinePlus Genetics, U.S. National Library of Medicine.
