Mitotic Centromere Associated Kinesin (MCAK)

KNSL6 shares 79.2% amino acid sequence homology with hamster Mcak, 63.2% homology with Xenopus XKCM1, 50.4% homology with mouse Kif2, and 33.7% homology with Xenopus DSK1.

Northern blot analysis detected an approximately 2.7- to 2.9-kb KNSL6 transcript at high levels in thymus and testis, at low levels in small intestine, the mucosal lining of colon, and placenta, and at very low levels in spleen and ovary; KNSL6 expression was not detected in prostate, peripheral blood leukocytes, heart, brain, lung, liver, skeletal muscle, kidney, or pancreas. The authors concluded that KNSL6 is expressed in tissues containing dividing cells. KNSL6 was not expressed in unstimulated T lymphocytes but was expressed in activated T cells during the S phase of the cell cycle.