The BCNT proteins: a long-neglected class of multifaceted proteins
The evolutionarily conserved family of Bucentaur (BCNT) proteins exhibits a widespread distribution in both animal and plants, yet its function remains largely unknown.
To investigate the biological role(s) of this protein family, we carried out functional studies in three experimental systems: Drosophila melanogaster, Danio rerio and Hela cells. The results of our work indicate that the BCNT proteins under investigation, Drosophila YETI, D. rerio RLTPL and human CFDP1, share conserved functions in chromatin remodeling and cytokinesis. In addition, preliminary results suggest that RLTPL is essential for proper embryogenesis and craniofacial development of Danio rerio and its depletion produce, among others defects, malformation of branchial arches. Notably, branchial arches defects are responsible for a large group of genetic syndromes which affect craniofacial development in humans. Thus, the Cfdp1 gene can be tested as a candidate for craniofacial syndromes.