Xylulokinase Homolog (XYLB)

XYLB shares 22% sequence identity with Hemophilus influenzae xylulokinase, and even higher identity to other gene products in C.elegans (45%) and yeast (31-35%), which are thought to belong to a family of enzymes that include fucokinase, gluconokinase, glycerokinase and xylulokinase. These proteins play important roles in energy metabolism.

The 3p22-p21.3 chromosomal region is one of 3 regions of 3p that is commonly deleted in various carcinomas. The XYLB gene contains 18 exons and spans approximately 28 kb. Northern blot analysis revealed that XYLB was expressed as a 2.3-kb major transcript in all tissues tested. A less abundant 1.8-kb mRNA was detected in heart and skeletal muscle.XYLB gene is located between the OCTL2 and ActRIIB genes on 3p22-p21.3.