MACROH2A2 Gene

Name macroH2A.2 histone
Description Histones are basic nuclear proteins that are responsible for the nucleosome structure of the chromosomal fiber in eukaryotes. Nucleosomes consist of approximately 146 bp of DNA wrapped around a histone octamer composed of pairs of each of the four core histones (H2A, H2B, H3, and H4). The chromatin fiber is further compacted through the interaction of a linker histone, H1, with the DNA between the nucleosomes to form higher order chromatin structures. This gene encodes a replication-independent histone that is a member of the histone H2A family. It replaces conventional H2A histones in a subset of nucleosomes where it represses transcription and may participate in stable X chromosome inactivation. [provided by RefSeq, Oct 2015]
Summary
{"type": "root", "children": [{"type": "p", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "\n MACROH2A2, a variant of histone H2A, functions as an important epigenetic regulator that modulates chromatin structure and gene expression during development, cellular differentiation, and in disease states. In pluripotent and differentiated cells, MACROH2A2 (often co‐occupying key developmental and pluripotency genes together with MACROH2A1 and H3K27me3) acts as a barrier to induced reprogramming by establishing a repressive chromatin state."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "1"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " Its targeted deposition into chromatin is actively driven by remodeling factors such as LSH, which catalyzes the ATP‐dependent exchange of canonical histones for MACROH2A variants, thereby reinforcing transcriptional silencing and maintaining genome integrity."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "3"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " In embryonic stem cells, dynamic promoter–associated peaks of MACROH2A2 exchange rapidly, in contrast to its more stable incorporation in differentiated fibroblasts; this behavior suggests an active role for MACROH2A2 in fine-tuning transcription and preserving cell identity during differentiation."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "5"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": ""}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n \n "}, {"type": "p", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "\n In the context of tumorigenesis, reduced expression or aberrant deposition of MACROH2A2 has been linked to cancer progression and recurrence—for instance, diminished levels predict poorer outcomes in lung cancer and are associated with anal neoplasm progression—highlighting its putative tumor suppressor function."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_fs", "start_ref": "6", "end_ref": "9"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " Moreover, MACROH2A2 can influence the DNA damage response; its transcriptional regulation—potentially modulated by factors such as 15-lipoxygenase-1—appears to delay the activation of damage markers like H2AX, thereby affecting damage signaling and repair kinetics."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "10"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": ""}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n \n "}, {"type": "p", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "\n Finally, MACROH2A2 has been implicated in lineage-specific differentiation processes; for example, it functions as a downstream effector in non-canonical erythropoietin signaling, where its proper expression is critical for the maturation of erythroid progenitors."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "11"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " Collectively, these findings indicate that MACROH2A2 plays multifaceted roles in stabilizing chromatin, enforcing gene repression, and safeguarding the genome, with its dysregulation contributing to developmental anomalies and cancer.\n "}]}, {"type": "rg", "children": [{"type": "r", "ref": 1, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Alexandre Gaspar-Maia, Zulekha A Qadeer, Dan Hasson, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "MacroH2A histone variants act as a barrier upon reprogramming towards pluripotency."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Nat Commun (2013)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1038/ncomms2582"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms2582"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "23463008"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23463008"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 2, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Vincent Pasque, Astrid Gillich, Nigel Garrett, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Histone variant macroH2A confers resistance to nuclear reprogramming."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "EMBO J (2011)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1038/emboj.2011.144"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1038/emboj.2011.144"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "21552206"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21552206"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 3, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Kai Ni, Jianke Ren, Xiaoping Xu, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "LSH mediates gene repression through macroH2A deposition."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Nat Commun (2020)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1038/s41467-020-19159-0"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-19159-0"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "33159050"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33159050"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 4, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Kai Ni, Kathrin Muegge "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "LSH catalyzes ATP-driven exchange of histone variants macroH2A1 and macroH2A2."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Nucleic Acids Res (2021)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1093/nar/gkab588"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1093/nar/gkab588"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "34223906"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34223906"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 5, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Ozlem Yildirim, Jui-Hung Hung, Ryan J Cedeno, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "A system for genome-wide histone variant dynamics in ES cells reveals dynamic MacroH2A2 replacement at promoters."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "PLoS Genet (2014)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1371/journal.pgen.1004515"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1004515"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "25102063"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25102063"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 6, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "J C Sporn, G Kustatscher, T Hothorn, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Histone macroH2A isoforms predict the risk of lung cancer recurrence."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Oncogene (2009)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1038/onc.2009.26"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1038/onc.2009.26"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "19648962"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19648962"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 7, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Wan-Hsiang Hu, Katsumi Miyai, Judith C Sporn, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Loss of histone variant macroH2A2 expression associates with progression of anal neoplasm."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "J Clin Pathol (2016)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1136/jclinpath-2015-203367"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1136/jclinpath-2015-203367"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "26658220"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26658220"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 8, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "David Corujo, Marcus Buschbeck "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Post-Translational Modifications of H2A Histone Variants and Their Role in Cancer."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Cancers (Basel) (2018)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.3390/cancers10030059"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers10030059"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "29495465"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29495465"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 9, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Kun Zhang, Hongguang Zhao, Kewei Zhang, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Chromatin-regulating genes are associated with postoperative prognosis and isocitrate dehydrogenase mutation in astrocytoma."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Ann Transl Med (2020)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.21037/atm-20-7229"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.21037/atm-20-7229"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "33437793"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33437793"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 10, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Yoo Jin Na, Bo Ram Kim, Jung Lim Kim, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Deficiency of 15-LOX-1 Induces Radioresistance through Downregulation of MacroH2A2 in Colorectal Cancer."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Cancers (Basel) (2019)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.3390/cancers11111776"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers11111776"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "31717983"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31717983"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 11, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "T M Schnöder, P Arreba-Tutusaus, I Griehl, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Epo-induced erythroid maturation is dependent on Plcγ1 signaling."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Cell Death Differ (2015)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1038/cdd.2014.186"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1038/cdd.2014.186"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "25394487"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25394487"}]}]}]}
NCBI Gene ID 55506
API
Download Associations
Predicted Functions View MACROH2A2's ARCHS4 Predicted Functions.
Co-expressed Genes View MACROH2A2's ARCHS4 Predicted Functions.
Expression in Tissues and Cell Lines View MACROH2A2's ARCHS4 Predicted Functions.

Functional Associations

MACROH2A2 has 2,132 functional associations with biological entities spanning 6 categories (chemical, functional term, phrase or reference, disease, phenotype or trait, cell line, cell type or tissue, gene, protein or microRNA, sequence feature) extracted from 40 datasets.

Click the + buttons to view associations for MACROH2A2 from the datasets below.

If available, associations are ranked by standardized value

Dataset Summary
Allen Brain Atlas Aging Dementia and Traumatic Brain Injury Tissue Sample Gene Expression Profiles tissue samples with high or low expression of MACROH2A2 gene relative to other tissue samples from the Allen Brain Atlas Aging Dementia and Traumatic Brain Injury Tissue Sample Gene Expression Profiles dataset.
Carcinogenome Chemical Perturbation Carcinogenicity Signatures small molecule perturbations changing expression of MACROH2A2 gene from the Carcinogenome Chemical Perturbation Carcinogenicity Signatures dataset.
CCLE Cell Line Proteomics Cell lines associated with MACROH2A2 protein from the CCLE Cell Line Proteomics dataset.
CellMarker Gene-Cell Type Associations cell types associated with MACROH2A2 gene from the CellMarker Gene-Cell Type Associations dataset.
ChEA Transcription Factor Targets 2022 transcription factors binding the promoter of MACROH2A2 gene in low- or high-throughput transcription factor functional studies from the CHEA Transcription Factor Targets 2022 dataset.
CM4AI KOLF21J CRISPRi Gene Perturbation Atlas gene perturbations changing expression of MACROH2A2 gene from the CM4AI KOLF21J CRISPRi Gene Perturbation Atlas dataset.
CM4AI U2OS Cell Map Protein Localization Assemblies assemblies containing MACROH2A2 protein from integrated AP-MS and IF data from the CM4AI U2OS Cell Map Protein Localization Assemblies dataset.
COMPARTMENTS Curated Protein Localization Evidence Scores 2025 cellular components containing MACROH2A2 protein from the COMPARTMENTS Curated Protein Localization Evidence Scores 2025 dataset.
COMPARTMENTS Text-mining Protein Localization Evidence Scores 2025 cellular components co-occuring with MACROH2A2 protein in abstracts of biomedical publications from the COMPARTMENTS Text-mining Protein Localization Evidence Scores 2025 dataset.
DepMap CRISPR Gene Dependency cell lines with fitness changed by MACROH2A2 gene knockdown relative to other cell lines from the DepMap CRISPR Gene Dependency dataset.
DISEASES Text-mining Gene-Disease Association Evidence Scores 2025 diseases co-occuring with MACROH2A2 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 MACROH2A2 gene in GWAS and other genetic association datasets from the DisGeNET Gene-Disease Associations dataset.
DisGeNET Gene-Phenotype Associations phenotypes associated with MACROH2A2 gene in GWAS and other genetic association datasets from the DisGeNET Gene-Phenoptype Associations dataset.
GO Biological Process Annotations 2023 biological processes involving MACROH2A2 gene from the curated GO Biological Process Annotations 2023 dataset.
GO Biological Process Annotations 2025 biological processes involving MACROH2A2 gene from the curated GO Biological Process Annotations2025 dataset.
GO Cellular Component Annotations 2023 cellular components containing MACROH2A2 protein from the curated GO Cellular Component Annotations 2023 dataset.
GO Cellular Component Annotations 2025 cellular components containing MACROH2A2 protein from the curated GO Cellular Component Annotations 2025 dataset.
GO Molecular Function Annotations 2023 molecular functions performed by MACROH2A2 gene from the curated GO Molecular Function Annotations 2023 dataset.
GO Molecular Function Annotations 2025 molecular functions performed by MACROH2A2 gene from the curated GO Molecular Function Annotations 2025 dataset.
GTEx eQTL 2025 SNPs regulating expression of MACROH2A2 gene from the GTEx eQTL 2025 dataset.
GTEx Tissue Gene Expression Profiles 2023 tissues with high or low expression of MACROH2A2 gene relative to other tissues from the GTEx Tissue Gene Expression Profiles 2023 dataset.
GTEx Tissue-Specific Aging Signatures tissue samples with high or low expression of MACROH2A2 gene relative to other tissue samples from the GTEx Tissue-Specific Aging Signatures dataset.
GWAS Catalog SNP-Phenotype Associations 2025 phenotypes associated with MACROH2A2 gene in GWAS datasets from the GWAS Catalog SNP-Phenotype Associations 2025 dataset.
JASPAR Predicted Human Transcription Factor Targets 2025 transcription factors regulating expression of MACROH2A2 gene predicted using known transcription factor binding site motifs from the JASPAR Predicted Human Transcription Factor Targets dataset.
JASPAR Predicted Mouse Transcription Factor Targets 2025 transcription factors regulating expression of MACROH2A2 gene predicted using known transcription factor binding site motifs from the JASPAR Predicted Mouse Transcription Factor Targets 2025 dataset.
KEGG Pathways 2026 pathways involving MACROH2A2 protein from the KEGG Pathways 2026 dataset.
LINCS L1000 CMAP Chemical Perturbation Consensus Signatures small molecule perturbations changing expression of MACROH2A2 gene from the LINCS L1000 CMAP Chemical Perturbations Consensus Signatures dataset.
LINCS L1000 CMAP CRISPR Knockout Consensus Signatures gene perturbations changing expression of MACROH2A2 gene from the LINCS L1000 CMAP CRISPR Knockout Consensus Signatures dataset.
MGI Mouse Phenotype Associations 2023 phenotypes of transgenic mice caused by MACROH2A2 gene mutations from the MGI Mouse Phenotype Associations 2023 dataset.
MoTrPAC Rat Endurance Exercise Training tissue samples with high or low expression of MACROH2A2 gene relative to other tissue samples from the MoTrPAC Rat Endurance Exercise Training dataset.
PFOCR Pathway Figure Associations 2023 pathways involving MACROH2A2 protein from the PFOCR Pathway Figure Associations 2023 dataset.
PFOCR Pathway Figure Associations 2024 pathways involving MACROH2A2 protein from the Wikipathways PFOCR 2024 dataset.
Rummagene Transcription Factor Associations 2026 transcription factors regulating expression of MACROH2A2 gene from the Rummagene Transcription Factor Associations 2026 dataset.
RummaGEO Drug Perturbation Signatures drug perturbations changing expression of MACROH2A2 gene from the RummaGEO Drug Perturbation Signatures dataset.
RummaGEO Gene Perturbation Signatures gene perturbations changing expression of MACROH2A2 gene from the RummaGEO Gene Perturbation Signatures dataset.
Sci-Plex Drug Perturbation Signatures drug perturbations changing expression of MACROH2A2 gene from the Sci-Plex Drug Perturbation Signatures dataset.
TISSUES Curated Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores 2025 tissues with high expression of MACROH2A2 protein from the TISSUES Curated Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores 2025 dataset.
TISSUES Experimental Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores 2025 tissues with high expression of MACROH2A2 protein in proteomics datasets from the TISSUES Experimental Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores 2025 dataset.
TISSUES Text-mining Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores 2025 tissues co-occuring with MACROH2A2 protein in abstracts of biomedical publications from the TISSUES Text-mining Tissue Protein Expression Evidence Scores 2025 dataset.
WikiPathways Pathways 2024 pathways involving MACROH2A2 protein from the WikiPathways Pathways 2024 dataset.