Forkhead Box Protein A2 (FOXA2)

FOXA2 encodes a member of the forkhead class of DNA-binding proteins. These hepatocyte nuclear factors are transcriptional activators for liver-specific genes such as albumin and transthyretin, and they also interact with chromatin.

FOXA2 has been linked to sporadic cases of maturity-onset diabetes of the young. Transcript variants encoding different isoforms have been identified for this gene. The genes encode polypeptides of 468, 459, and 354 amino acids, respectively. Both HNF3A and HNF3B are expressed in tissues of endodermal origin, i.e., stomach, intestines, liver, and lung, HNF3G is more extensively expressed, being present additionally in ovary, testis, heart, and adipose tissue, but missing from lung.