9.B.411.  The Prominin (Prominin) Family

Prominins may play a role in cell differentiation, proliferation and apoptosis. They bind cholesterol in cholesterol-containing plasma membrane microdomains and may play a role in the organization of the apical plasma membrane in epithelial cells. During early retinal development they act as key regulators of disk morphogenesis (Zacchigna et al. 2009). They are involved in regulation of MAPK and Akt signaling pathways. In neuroblastoma cells, they suppress cell differentiation such as neurite outgrowth in a RET-dependent manner. Prominins control ciliary length throughout the animal kingdom as demonstrated using human prominin-1 and zebrafish prominin-3. Homologs may be restricted to animals.