Fascin 2 (FSCN2)

Fascin-2 is a member of the fascin protein family. Fascins crosslink actin into filamentous bundles within dynamic cell extensions. This family member is proposed to play a role in photoreceptor disk morphogenesis. A mutation in this gene results in one form of autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa and macular degeneration. Multiple transcript variants encoding different isoforms have been found for this gene.FSCN2 shares 56% amino acid identity with FSCN1 and 94% identity with bovine retinal fascin. The largest block of conserved sequence between human and bovine FSCN2 includes a putative phosphorylation site at ser39. FSCN2 also shares significant similarity with several other vertebrate and invertebrate fascins. Northern blot analysis of bovine tissues detected Fscn2 expression only in retina.