Apolipoprotein B mRNA Editing Enzyme Catalytic Polypeptide 2 (APOBEC2)

The deduced APOBEC2 protein has 224 amino acids. Phylogenetic analysis of the cytidine deaminase superfamily based on the catalytic domains of the proteins indicated that APOBEC2 is evolutionarily closer to APOBEC1 than to the other known members. Compared to APOBEC1, APOBEC2 has a longer N-terminal region and a shorter C-terminal region.

However, APOBEC2 did not recognize APOB mRNA as a substrate. Northern blot analysis showed that APOBEC2 is expressed exclusively in heart and skeletal muscle. APOBEC2 expression was not detected in brain, lung, liver, pancreas, small intestine, colon, kidney, spleen, thymus, leukocyte, testis, uterus, placenta, or prostate.