Basic Helix Loop Helix Domain Containing Protein B8 (BHLHB8)

MIST1 is a basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) protein that binds to the DNA target sequence CANNTG (E box) present in the promoter or enhancer region of numerous developmentally regulated genes.

The deduced 197-amino acid protein has a calculated molecular mass of 22 kD. Northern blot analysis detected a 3.5-kb Mist1 transcript in adult rat stomach, liver, lung, and spleen, but not in heart, brain, kidney, or testis. In embryonic mice, Mist1 was first expressed in the primitive gut and in the developing lung bud. Expression was also detected in developing skeletal muscle tissues and later in pancreas, submandibular gland, and adult spleen. In all mammalian cell types examined, transfected Mist1 was expressed as a nuclear protein.