Hairy And Enhancer Of Split 4 (HES4)

HES4 belongs to a family of basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) proteins that are essential for neurogenesis, myogenesis, hematopoiesis, and sex determination. The 'hairy' gene in Drosophila encodes a bHLH protein that functions in at least 2 steps during Drosophila development: first, during embryogenesis, when it partakes in the establishment of segments, and second, during the larval stage, when it functions negatively in determining the pattern of sensory bristles on the adult fly. By searching an EST database for sequences containing basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) domains, Bessho et al. (2001) identified HES4. The deduced 221-amino acid protein contains an N-terminal bHLH domain, a central 'orange' domain, and a conserved C-terminal WRPW sequence. HES4 shares significant homology with HES1 , HES2, and HES3, particularly in the bHLH and orange domains.