BRCA2 - Definition and Overview

BRCA2 refers to either a gene (BReast-CAncer susceptibility gene 2, located on human chromosome 13, 13q12-13) or the protein coded for by that gene. The BRCA2 protein functions as a tumor suppressor. Like the BRCA1 protein, BRCA2 seems to function in the cell nucleus to repair damaged DNA. Mutations in the genes that code for the BRCA1 and BRCA2 proteins can result in defective repair of damaged DNA, accumulation of mutations, and tumor formation, particularly in the ovaries and the breast.

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Related Topics

• DNA repair
• cancer

External Links

• "Role of BRCA1 and BRCA2 as regulators of DNA repair, transcription, and cell cycle in response to DNA damage" by Kiyotsugu Yoshida and Yoshio Miki (2004) [1] (http://www.jca.gr.jp/cs/95/11/866.pdf).
• Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man: OMIM 600185 (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/dispomim.cgi?id=600185)