B melanoma antigen 1; B melanoma antigen; antigen MZ2-BA; cancer/testis antigen 2.1; CT2.1 (BAGE, BAGE1)

Function

• unknown
• antigen recognized on a melanoma by autologous cytolytic T-lymphocytes

Structure

belongs to the BAGE family

Alternative splicing

named isoforms=1

Expression

• not expressed in normal tissues, except in testis

Pathology

• expressed with significant proportion in melanomas
• more frequently expressed in metastatic melanomas than in primary melanomas
• also expressed in bladder carcinomas, head & neck squamous cell carcinomas, lung cancer & breast carcinomas
• not expressed in renal cell carcinoma, colorectal cancer prostatic carcinoma, leukemias or lymphomas.

Genetics

• ancestral BAGE gene was generated by juxtacentromeric reshuffling of the MLL3 gene
• the BAGE family was expanded by juxtacentromeric movement &/or acrocentric exchanges
• BAGE family is composed of expressed genes that map to the juxtacentromeric regions of chromosomes 13 & 21 & of unexpressed gene fragments that scattered in the juxtacentromeric regions of several chromosomes, including chromosomes 9, 13, 18 & 21

More general terms

• melanoma associated antigen (MAGE)
• testis-specific protein
• secreted protein

Database

• Entrez gene: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?db=gene&cmd=Retrieve&dopt=Graphics&list_uids=574
• Kegg: http://www.genome.jp/dbget-bin/www_bget?hsa:574
• OMIM: https://mirror.omim.org/entry/605167
• UniProt: http://www.uniprot.org/uniprot/Q13072.html