UBA52 Gene

HGNC Family	L ribosomal proteins (RPL)
Name	ubiquitin A-52 residue ribosomal protein fusion product 1
Description	Ubiquitin is a highly conserved nuclear and cytoplasmic protein that has a major role in targeting cellular proteins for degradation by the 26S proteosome. It is also involved in the maintenance of chromatin structure, the regulation of gene expression, and the stress response. Ubiquitin is synthesized as a precursor protein consisting of either polyubiquitin chains or a single ubiquitin moiety fused to an unrelated protein. This gene encodes a fusion protein consisting of ubiquitin at the N terminus and ribosomal protein L40 at the C terminus, a C-terminal extension protein (CEP). Multiple processed pseudogenes derived from this gene are present in the genome. [provided by RefSeq, Jul 2008]
Summary	{"type": "root", "children": [{"type": "p", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "\nUBA52 encodes a fusion protein composed of an N‐terminal ubiquitin and a C‐terminal ribosomal protein (RPL40), thereby serving dual roles: replenishing the cellular pool of ubiquitin and supplying an essential component for ribosome assembly. Loss‐of-function studies in mice reveal that UBA52 is indispensable for proper protein synthesis and cell‐cycle progression, as UBA52 deficiency leads to embryonic lethality and marked cell‐cycle arrest – underscoring its critical function in ribosome biogenesis and global translation."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "1"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n\n"}, {"type": "p", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "\nIn cancer models, the UBA52 fusion product plays multifaceted roles in modulating key regulatory pathways. In colorectal cancer, for instance, the long noncoding RNA LUCAT1 binds UBA52, thereby promoting the RPL40–MDM2–p53 signaling axis to influence cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. In hepatocellular carcinoma, UBA52 has been found to drive cell proliferation and metastasis by regulating autophagy via EMC6, while studies in gastric adenocarcinoma demonstrate that SMYD5‐mediated trimethylation of the RPL40 component reprograms mRNA translation, facilitating oncogenic progression."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_fs", "start_ref": "3", "end_ref": "5"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n\n"}, {"type": "p", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "\nBeyond its roles in translation and tumorigenesis, UBA52 contributes to genome integrity. The C‐terminal ribosomal fragment RPL40 derived from UBA52 has been shown to interact with histones and the E3 ligase RNF168 at sites of DNA damage. By masking key nucleosomal acidic patches and regulatory residues, it limits RNF168 engagement and subsequent H2A/H2AX ubiquitination, thus fine‐tuning the recruitment of repair proteins such as 53BP1 and supporting proper DNA repair."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "6"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n\n"}, {"type": "p", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "\nMoreover, structural studies of acidic transactivation domains—exemplified by the erythroid-specific transcription factor EKLF—highlight noncovalent interactions with ubiquitin that bear resemblance to the ubiquitin moiety provided by UBA52. Such interactions are critical for modulating transcriptional activation as well as proteolytic turnover, emphasizing the versatility and broad regulatory impact of ubiquitin, whether operating as a free entity or as an integral part of fusion proteins like UBA52."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "7"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n"}]}, {"type": "rg", "children": [{"type": "r", "ref": 1, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Masanori Kobayashi, Shigeru Oshima, Chiaki Maeyashiki, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "The ubiquitin hybrid gene UBA52 regulates ubiquitination of ribosome and sustains embryonic development."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Sci Rep (2016)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1038/srep36780"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1038/srep36780"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "27829658"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27829658"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 2, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Matthew John Eastham, Andria Pelava, Graeme Raymond Wells, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "RPS27a and RPL40, Which Are Produced as Ubiquitin Fusion Proteins, Are Not Essential for p53 Signalling."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Biomolecules (2023)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.3390/biom13060898"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.3390/biom13060898"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "37371478"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37371478"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 3, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Qianwen Zhou, Zhibo Hou, Siyu Zuo, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "LUCAT1 promotes colorectal cancer tumorigenesis by targeting the ribosomal protein L40-MDM2-p53 pathway through binding with UBA52."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Cancer Sci (2019)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1111/cas.13951"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1111/cas.13951"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "30690837"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30690837"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 4, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Li Tong, Xiaofei Zheng, Tianqi Wang, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Inhibition of UBA52 induces autophagy via EMC6 to suppress hepatocellular carcinoma tumorigenesis and progression."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "J Cell Mol Med (2024)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1111/jcmm.18164"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1111/jcmm.18164"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "38445807"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38445807"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 5, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Juhyung Park, Jibo Wu, Krzysztof J Szkop, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "SMYD5 methylation of rpL40 links ribosomal output to gastric cancer."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Nature (2024)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1038/s41586-024-07718-0"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-024-07718-0"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "39048817"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39048817"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 6, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Seong-Ok Lee, Jessica L Kelliher, Wan Song, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "UBA80 and UBA52 fine-tune RNF168-dependent histone ubiquitination and DNA repair."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "J Biol Chem (2023)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1016/j.jbc.2023.105043"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbc.2023.105043"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "37451480"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37451480"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 7, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Luca Raiola, Mathieu Lussier-Price, David Gagnon, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Structural characterization of a noncovalent complex between ubiquitin and the transactivation domain of the erythroid-specific factor EKLF."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Structure (2013)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1016/j.str.2013.08.027"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1016/j.str.2013.08.027"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "24139988"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24139988"}]}]}]}
Synonyms	RPL40, HUBCEP52, L40, CEP52
Proteins	RL40_HUMAN
NCBI Gene ID	7311
API
Download Associations
Predicted Functions
Co-expressed Genes
Expression in Tissues and Cell Lines

Functional Associations

UBA52 has 12,575 functional associations with biological entities spanning 9 categories (molecular profile, organism, functional term, phrase or reference, chemical, disease, phenotype or trait, structural feature, cell line, cell type or tissue, gene, protein or microRNA, sequence feature) extracted from 110 datasets.

Click the + buttons to view associations for UBA52 from the datasets below.

If available, associations are ranked by standardized value

Harmonizome 3.0

UBA52 Gene

Functional Associations

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

	Dataset	Summary
	Achilles Cell Line Gene Essentiality Profiles	cell lines with fitness changed by UBA52 gene knockdown relative to other cell lines from the Achilles Cell Line Gene Essentiality Profiles dataset.
	Allen Brain Atlas Adult Human Brain Tissue Gene Expression Profiles	tissues with high or low expression of UBA52 gene relative to other tissues from the Allen Brain Atlas Adult Human 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 UBA52 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 UBA52 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 UBA52 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 UBA52 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 UBA52 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 UBA52 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 UBA52 gene relative to other cell types and tissues from the BioGPS Mouse Cell Type and Tissue Gene Expression Profiles dataset.
	CCLE Cell Line Gene CNV Profiles	cell lines with high or low copy number of UBA52 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 UBA52 gene relative to other cell lines from the CCLE Cell Line Gene Expression Profiles dataset.
	CCLE Cell Line Proteomics	Cell lines associated with UBA52 protein from the CCLE Cell Line Proteomics dataset.
	CellMarker Gene-Cell Type Associations	cell types associated with UBA52 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 UBA52 gene from the CHEA Transcription Factor Binding Site Profiles dataset.
	ChEA Transcription Factor Targets	transcription factors binding the promoter of UBA52 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 UBA52 gene in low- or high-throughput transcription factor functional studies from the CHEA Transcription Factor Targets 2022 dataset.
	COMPARTMENTS Curated Protein Localization Evidence Scores	cellular components containing UBA52 protein from the COMPARTMENTS Curated Protein Localization Evidence Scores dataset.
	COMPARTMENTS Curated Protein Localization Evidence Scores 2025	cellular components containing UBA52 protein from the COMPARTMENTS Curated Protein Localization Evidence Scores 2025 dataset.
	COMPARTMENTS Text-mining Protein Localization Evidence Scores	cellular components co-occuring with UBA52 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 UBA52 protein in abstracts of biomedical publications from the COMPARTMENTS Text-mining Protein Localization Evidence Scores 2025 dataset.
	CORUM Protein Complexes	protein complexs containing UBA52 protein from the CORUM Protein Complexes dataset.
	COSMIC Cell Line Gene CNV Profiles	cell lines with high or low copy number of UBA52 gene relative to other cell lines from the COSMIC Cell Line Gene CNV Profiles dataset.
	COSMIC Cell Line Gene Mutation Profiles	cell lines with UBA52 gene mutations from the COSMIC Cell Line Gene Mutation Profiles dataset.
	CTD Gene-Chemical Interactions	chemicals interacting with UBA52 gene/protein from the curated CTD Gene-Chemical Interactions dataset.
	CTD Gene-Disease Associations	diseases associated with UBA52 gene/protein from the curated CTD Gene-Disease Associations dataset.
	DISEASES Experimental Gene-Disease Association Evidence Scores 2025	diseases associated with UBA52 gene in GWAS datasets from the DISEASES Experimental Gene-Disease Assocation Evidence Scores 2025 dataset.
	DISEASES Text-mining Gene-Disease Association Evidence Scores	diseases co-occuring with UBA52 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 UBA52 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 UBA52 gene in GWAS and other genetic association datasets from the DisGeNET Gene-Disease Associations dataset.
	ENCODE Histone Modification Site Profiles	histone modification site profiles with high histone modification abundance at UBA52 gene from the ENCODE Histone Modification Site Profiles dataset.
	ENCODE Transcription Factor Binding Site Profiles	transcription factor binding site profiles with transcription factor binding evidence at the promoter of UBA52 gene from the ENCODE Transcription Factor Binding Site Profiles dataset.
	ENCODE Transcription Factor Targets	transcription factors binding the promoter of UBA52 gene in ChIP-seq datasets from the ENCODE Transcription Factor Targets dataset.
	ESCAPE Omics Signatures of Genes and Proteins for Stem Cells	PubMedIDs of publications reporting gene signatures containing UBA52 from the ESCAPE Omics Signatures of Genes and Proteins for Stem Cells dataset.
	GDSC Cell Line Gene Expression Profiles	cell lines with high or low expression of UBA52 gene relative to other cell lines from the GDSC Cell Line Gene Expression Profiles dataset.
	GeneRIF Biological Term Annotations	biological terms co-occuring with UBA52 gene in literature-supported statements describing functions of genes from the GeneRIF Biological Term Annotations dataset.
	GeneSigDB Published Gene Signatures	PubMedIDs of publications reporting gene signatures containing UBA52 from the GeneSigDB Published Gene Signatures dataset.
	GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Diseases	disease perturbations changing expression of UBA52 gene from the GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Diseases dataset.
	GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Gene Perturbations	gene perturbations changing expression of UBA52 gene from the GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Gene Perturbations dataset.
	GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Kinase Perturbations	kinase perturbations changing expression of UBA52 gene from the GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Kinase Perturbations dataset.
	GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Small Molecules	small molecule perturbations changing expression of UBA52 gene from the GEO Signatures of Differentially Expressed Genes for Small Molecules dataset.