Endo/Exonuclease, Endonuclease G Like Protein (EXOG)

EXOG encodes an endo/exonuclease with 5'-3' exonuclease activity. The encoded enzyme catalyzes the hydrolysis of ester linkages at the 5' end of a nucleic acid chain. This enzyme is localized to the mitochondria and may play a role in programmed cell death. Alternatively spliced transcript variants have been described. A pseudogene exists on chromosome 18. ENGL was the most telomeric gene in the cloned region and is located next to the ActRIIB gene. Northern blot analysis revealed that ENGL was expressed as a 1.7-kb mRNA in all tissues tested. An additional 2.1-kb mRNA, designated ENGLb, was detected in heart, liver, skeletal muscle, and testis. The ENGLb transcript contained all or part of 4 of the 6 ENGL exons, as well as a 3-prime exon not present in the genomic clone analyzed.