BCL3 Gene

HGNC Family	Ankyrin repeat domain containing (ANKRD)
Name	B-cell CLL/lymphoma 3
Description	This gene is a proto-oncogene candidate. It is identified by its translocation into the immunoglobulin alpha-locus in some cases of B-cell leukemia. The protein encoded by this gene contains seven ankyrin repeats, which are most closely related to those found in I kappa B proteins. This protein functions as a transcriptional co-activator that activates through its association with NF-kappa B homodimers. The expression of this gene can be induced by NF-kappa B, which forms a part of the autoregulatory loop that controls the nuclear residence of p50 NF-kappa B. [provided by RefSeq, Jul 2008]
Summary	{"type": "root", "children": [{"type": "p", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "\n BCL3 is emerging as a multifunctional regulator that modulates cell fate in both normal and pathological settings. In several solid tumors including melanoma, glioma, colorectal, hepatocellular, and ovarian cancers, BCL3 acts as a proto‐oncogene by interacting with NF‑κB p50/p52 homodimers to regulate the transcription of genes governing cell cycle progression, proliferation, survival, and invasion."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_fs", "start_ref": "1", "end_ref": "4"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n Furthermore, in melanoma and ovarian cancer, alterations in BCL3 expression or its subcellular localization promote oncogenic signaling through downstream mediators such as Cyclin D1, AKT, and STAT3, thereby enhancing tumor cell survival and invasiveness."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "1"}, {"type": "fg_f", "ref": "5"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n "}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n "}, {"type": "p", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "\n In glioma, elevated BCL3 contributes to aggressive tumor behavior by promoting proliferation and inhibiting apoptosis via STAT3 activation, while in colorectal cancer BCL3 supports tumor cell survival in part by engaging the AKT/mTOR pathway and influencing cyclin expression."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "3"}, {"type": "fg_f", "ref": "7"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " Genetic studies also implicate BCL3 in developmental defects such as cleft lip with a parent‐of‐origin effect, highlighting its broader roles beyond tumorigenesis."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "8"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n "}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n "}, {"type": "p", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "\n Regulation of BCL3 expression is complex and influenced by both hormonal and inflammatory signals. For instance, thyroid hormone receptor–mediated pathways recruit corepressors to modulate BCL3 transcription"}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "9"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": ", and during viral infection such as HTLV‑I, viral oncoproteins induce BCL3 through NF‑κB‑dependent mechanisms to alter host gene expression."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "10"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " Intriguingly, in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, lower levels of BCL3 are associated with an expansion of cancer stem cells and enhanced metastasis, suggesting that BCL3 may also act as a barrier to dedifferentiation and dissemination."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "11"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n "}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n "}, {"type": "p", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "\n Finally, functional studies in colorectal cancer cells indicate that BCL3 can drive pro‐tumorigenic COX‑2/PGE2 signaling, thereby further emphasizing its role as a central node in inflammatory and proliferative pathways."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "12"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " Collectively, these findings position BCL3 as a critical integrator of NF‑κB and other signaling pathways whose aberrant regulation has significant implications for tumor progression, inflammation, and developmental anomalies."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_fs", "start_ref": "1", "end_ref": "3"}, {"type": "fg_f", "ref": "5"}, {"type": "fg_f", "ref": "8"}, {"type": "fg_f", "ref": "11"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n "}]}, {"type": "rg", "children": [{"type": "r", "ref": 1, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Ramin Massoumi, Silke Kuphal, Claus Hellerbrand, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Down-regulation of CYLD expression by Snail promotes tumor progression in malignant melanoma."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "J Exp Med (2009)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1084/jem.20082044"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1084/jem.20082044"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "19124656"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19124656"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 2, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Sara A Wickström, Katarzyna C Masoumi, Saadi Khochbin, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "CYLD negatively regulates cell-cycle progression by inactivating HDAC6 and increasing the levels of acetylated tubulin."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "EMBO J (2010)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1038/emboj.2009.317"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1038/emboj.2009.317"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "19893491"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19893491"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 3, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Bettina C Urban, Tracey J Collard, Catherine J Eagle, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "BCL-3 expression promotes colorectal tumorigenesis through activation of AKT signalling."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Gut (2016)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1136/gutjnl-2014-308270"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1136/gutjnl-2014-308270"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "26033966"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26033966"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 4, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Kangsheng Tu, Zhikui Liu, Bowen Yao, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "BCL-3 promotes the tumor growth of hepatocellular carcinoma by regulating cell proliferation and the cell cycle through cyclin D1."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Oncol Rep (2016)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.3892/or.2016.4616"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.3892/or.2016.4616"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "26882953"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26882953"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 5, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Jianheng Wu, Linfan Li, Guangyuan Jiang, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "B-cell CLL/lymphoma 3 promotes glioma cell proliferation and inhibits apoptosis through the oncogenic STAT3 pathway."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Int J Oncol (2016)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.3892/ijo.2016.3729"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.3892/ijo.2016.3729"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "27748795"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27748795"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 6, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Shuang Luo, Jidong Wang, Ying Ma, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "PPARγ inhibits ovarian cancer cells proliferation through upregulation of miR-125b."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Biochem Biophys Res Commun (2015)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1016/j.bbrc.2015.04.023"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbrc.2015.04.023"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "25944662"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25944662"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 7, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Karunakar Saamarthy, Sofie Björner, Martin Johansson, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Early diagnostic value of Bcl-3 localization in colorectal cancer."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "BMC Cancer (2015)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1186/s12885-015-1342-6"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1186/s12885-015-1342-6"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "25929479"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25929479"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 8, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Mona Gajera, Neha Desai, Akiko Suzuki, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "MicroRNA-655-3p and microRNA-497-5p inhibit cell proliferation in cultured human lip cells through the regulation of genes related to human cleft lip."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "BMC Med Genomics (2019)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1186/s12920-019-0535-2"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1186/s12920-019-0535-2"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "31122291"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31122291"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 9, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Kyung-Chul Choi, So-Young Oh, Hee-Bum Kang, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "The functional relationship between co-repressor N-CoR and SMRT in mediating transcriptional repression by thyroid hormone receptor alpha."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Biochem J (2008)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1042/BJ20071393"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1042/BJ20071393"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "18052923"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18052923"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 10, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Ryuichiro Kimura, Masachika Senba, Samuel J Cutler, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Human T cell leukemia virus type I tax-induced IκB-ζ modulates tax-dependent and tax-independent gene expression in T cells."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Neoplasia (2013)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1593/neo.131140"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1593/neo.131140"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "24027435"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24027435"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 11, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Jiaoyu Ai, Sonja M Wörmann, Kıvanç Görgülü, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Bcl3 Couples Cancer Stem Cell Enrichment With Pancreatic Cancer Molecular Subtypes."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Gastroenterology (2021)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1053/j.gastro.2021.03.051"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1053/j.gastro.2021.03.051"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "33819482"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33819482"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 12, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Tracey Jane Collard, Hafsah Mohammed Fallatah, Alexander Greenhough, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "BCL‑3 promotes cyclooxygenase‑2/prostaglandin E2 signalling in colorectal cancer."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Int J Oncol (2020)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.3892/ijo.2020.5013"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.3892/ijo.2020.5013"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "32319612"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32319612"}]}]}]}
Synonyms	BCL4, D19S37
Proteins	BCL3_HUMAN
NCBI Gene ID	602
API
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Predicted Functions
Co-expressed Genes
Expression in Tissues and Cell Lines

Functional Associations

BCL3 has 8,827 functional associations with biological entities spanning 8 categories (molecular profile, organism, chemical, functional term, phrase or reference, disease, phenotype or trait, structural feature, cell line, cell type or tissue, gene, protein or microRNA) extracted from 131 datasets.

Click the + buttons to view associations for BCL3 from the datasets below.

If available, associations are ranked by standardized value

Harmonizome 3.0

BCL3 Gene

Functional Associations

Please acknowledge the Harmonizome in your publications by citing the following reference(s):

	Dataset	Summary
	Allen Brain Atlas Adult Human Brain Tissue Gene Expression Profiles	tissues with high or low expression of BCL3 gene relative to other tissues from the Allen Brain Atlas Adult Human Brain Tissue Gene Expression Profiles dataset.
	Allen Brain Atlas Adult Mouse Brain Tissue Gene Expression Profiles	tissues with high or low expression of BCL3 gene relative to other tissues from the Allen Brain Atlas Adult Mouse Brain Tissue Gene Expression Profiles dataset.
	Allen Brain Atlas Aging Dementia and Traumatic Brain Injury Tissue Sample Gene Expression Profiles	tissue samples with high or low expression of BCL3 gene relative to other tissue samples from the Allen Brain Atlas Aging Dementia and Traumatic Brain Injury Tissue Sample Gene Expression Profiles dataset.
	Allen Brain Atlas Developing Human Brain Tissue Gene Expression Profiles by Microarray	tissue samples with high or low expression of BCL3 gene relative to other tissue samples from the Allen Brain Atlas Developing Human Brain Tissue Gene Expression Profiles by Microarray dataset.
	Allen Brain Atlas Developing Human Brain Tissue Gene Expression Profiles by RNA-seq	tissue samples with high or low expression of BCL3 gene relative to other tissue samples from the Allen Brain Atlas Developing Human Brain Tissue Gene Expression Profiles by RNA-seq dataset.
	Allen Brain Atlas Prenatal Human Brain Tissue Gene Expression Profiles	tissues with high or low expression of BCL3 gene relative to other tissues from the Allen Brain Atlas Prenatal Human Brain Tissue Gene Expression Profiles dataset.
	BioGPS Cell Line Gene Expression Profiles	cell lines with high or low expression of BCL3 gene relative to other cell lines from the BioGPS Cell Line Gene Expression Profiles dataset.
	BioGPS Human Cell Type and Tissue Gene Expression Profiles	cell types and tissues with high or low expression of BCL3 gene relative to other cell types and tissues from the BioGPS Human Cell Type and Tissue Gene Expression Profiles dataset.
	BioGPS Mouse Cell Type and Tissue Gene Expression Profiles	cell types and tissues with high or low expression of BCL3 gene relative to other cell types and tissues from the BioGPS Mouse Cell Type and Tissue Gene Expression Profiles dataset.
	Carcinogenome Chemical Perturbation Carcinogenicity Signatures	small molecule perturbations changing expression of BCL3 gene from the Carcinogenome Chemical Perturbation Carcinogenicity Signatures dataset.
	CCLE Cell Line Gene CNV Profiles	cell lines with high or low copy number of BCL3 gene relative to other cell lines from the CCLE Cell Line Gene CNV Profiles dataset.
	CCLE Cell Line Gene Expression Profiles	cell lines with high or low expression of BCL3 gene relative to other cell lines from the CCLE Cell Line Gene Expression Profiles dataset.
	CCLE Cell Line Gene Mutation Profiles	cell lines with BCL3 gene mutations from the CCLE Cell Line Gene Mutation Profiles dataset.
	CCLE Cell Line Proteomics	Cell lines associated with BCL3 protein from the CCLE Cell Line Proteomics dataset.
	CellMarker Gene-Cell Type Associations	cell types associated with BCL3 gene from the CellMarker Gene-Cell Type Associations dataset.
	ChEA Transcription Factor Binding Site Profiles	transcription factor binding site profiles with transcription factor binding evidence at the promoter of BCL3 gene from the CHEA Transcription Factor Binding Site Profiles dataset.
	ChEA Transcription Factor Targets	transcription factors binding the promoter of BCL3 gene in low- or high-throughput transcription factor functional studies from the CHEA Transcription Factor Targets dataset.
	ChEA Transcription Factor Targets 2022	transcription factors binding the promoter of BCL3 gene in low- or high-throughput transcription factor functional studies from the CHEA Transcription Factor Targets 2022 dataset.
	CMAP Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Small Molecules	small molecule perturbations changing expression of BCL3 gene from the CMAP Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Small Molecules dataset.
	COMPARTMENTS Curated Protein Localization Evidence Scores	cellular components containing BCL3 protein from the COMPARTMENTS Curated Protein Localization Evidence Scores dataset.
	COMPARTMENTS Curated Protein Localization Evidence Scores 2025	cellular components containing BCL3 protein from the COMPARTMENTS Curated Protein Localization Evidence Scores 2025 dataset.
	COMPARTMENTS Experimental Protein Localization Evidence Scores	cellular components containing BCL3 protein in low- or high-throughput protein localization assays from the COMPARTMENTS Experimental Protein Localization Evidence Scores dataset.
	COMPARTMENTS Experimental Protein Localization Evidence Scores 2025	cellular components containing BCL3 protein in low- or high-throughput protein localization assays from the COMPARTMENTS Experimental Protein Localization Evidence Scores 2025 dataset.
	COMPARTMENTS Text-mining Protein Localization Evidence Scores	cellular components co-occuring with BCL3 protein in abstracts of biomedical publications from the COMPARTMENTS Text-mining Protein Localization Evidence Scores dataset.
	COMPARTMENTS Text-mining Protein Localization Evidence Scores 2025	cellular components co-occuring with BCL3 protein in abstracts of biomedical publications from the COMPARTMENTS Text-mining Protein Localization Evidence Scores 2025 dataset.
	CORUM Protein Complexes	protein complexs containing BCL3 protein from the CORUM Protein Complexes dataset.
	COSMIC Cell Line Gene CNV Profiles	cell lines with high or low copy number of BCL3 gene relative to other cell lines from the COSMIC Cell Line Gene CNV Profiles dataset.
	COSMIC Cell Line Gene Mutation Profiles	cell lines with BCL3 gene mutations from the COSMIC Cell Line Gene Mutation Profiles dataset.
	CTD Gene-Chemical Interactions	chemicals interacting with BCL3 gene/protein from the curated CTD Gene-Chemical Interactions dataset.
	CTD Gene-Disease Associations	diseases associated with BCL3 gene/protein from the curated CTD Gene-Disease Associations dataset.
	DeepCoverMOA Drug Mechanisms of Action	small molecule perturbations with high or low expression of BCL3 protein relative to other small molecule perturbations from the DeepCoverMOA Drug Mechanisms of Action dataset.
	DepMap CRISPR Gene Dependency	cell lines with fitness changed by BCL3 gene knockdown relative to other cell lines from the DepMap CRISPR Gene Dependency dataset.
	DISEASES Curated Gene-Disease Association Evidence Scores	diseases involving BCL3 gene from the DISEASES Curated Gene-Disease Assocation Evidence Scores dataset.
	DISEASES Curated Gene-Disease Association Evidence Scores 2025	diseases involving BCL3 gene from the DISEASES Curated Gene-Disease Association Evidence Scores 2025 dataset.
	DISEASES Experimental Gene-Disease Association Evidence Scores	diseases associated with BCL3 gene in GWAS datasets from the DISEASES Experimental Gene-Disease Assocation Evidence Scores dataset.
	DISEASES Text-mining Gene-Disease Association Evidence Scores	diseases co-occuring with BCL3 gene in abstracts of biomedical publications from the DISEASES Text-mining Gene-Disease Assocation Evidence Scores dataset.
	DISEASES Text-mining Gene-Disease Association Evidence Scores 2025	diseases co-occuring with BCL3 gene in abstracts of biomedical publications from the DISEASES Text-mining Gene-Disease Assocation Evidence Scores 2025 dataset.
	DisGeNET Gene-Disease Associations	diseases associated with BCL3 gene in GWAS and other genetic association datasets from the DisGeNET Gene-Disease Associations dataset.
	DisGeNET Gene-Phenotype Associations	phenotypes associated with BCL3 gene in GWAS and other genetic association datasets from the DisGeNET Gene-Phenoptype Associations dataset.
	ENCODE Histone Modification Site Profiles	histone modification site profiles with high histone modification abundance at BCL3 gene from the ENCODE Histone Modification Site Profiles dataset.