Membrane-spanning 4A explained

Membrane-spanning 4A genes are members of the CD20-like family. The MS4A genes are usually organized in a single genomic clusters in mammals, suggestive of gene duplication events.^[1] MS4A genes encode a class of four-transmembrane spanning proteins. MS4A genes have been described to act as a specific kind of olfactory receptor in the necklace olfactory sensory neurons in mice (Mus musculus).^[2]

In human (Homo sapiens) the members of this family include:

• MS4A1 (better known as "CD20")
• MS4A2
• MS4A3
• MS4A4A
• MS4A4E
• MS4A5
• MS4A6A
• MS4A6E
• MS4A7
• MS4A8B
• MS4A9
• MS4A10
• MS4A12
• MS4A13
• MS4A14
• MS4A15
• MS4A18

Notes and References

1. Liang Y, Buckley TR, Tu L, Langdon SD, Tedder TF . Structural organization of the human MS4A gene cluster on Chromosome 11q12 . Immunogenetics . 53 . 5 . 357–68 . July 2001 . 11486273 . 10.1007/s002510100339. 21846867 .
2. Greer PL, Bear DM, Lassance JM, Bloom ML, Tsukahara T, Pashkovski SL, Masuda FK, Nowlan AC, Kirchner R, Hoekstra HE, et al. 2016. A family of non-GPCR chemosensors defines an alternative logic for mammalian olfaction. Cell. 165:1734–1748. doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2016.05.001.