Hox Gene
Hox genes are a group of related genes that control the body plan of the embryo along the anterior-posterior (head-tail) axis. After the embryonic segments have formed, the Hox proteins determine the type of segment structures (e.g. legs, antennae, and wings in fruit flies or the different vertebrate ribs in humans) that will form on a given segment. Hox proteins thus confer segmental identity, but do not form the actual segments themselves
Hox genes are defined as having the following properties:
- their protein product is a transcription factor
- they contain a DNA sequence known as the homeobox
- in many animals, the organization of the Hox genes on the chromosome is the same as the order of their expression along the anterior-posterior axis of the developing animal, and are thus said to display colinearity.
Read more about Hox Gene: Hox Proteins, Sequence and Functional Conservation, Classification of Hox Proteins, Genes Regulated By Hox Proteins, Enhancer Sequences That Are Bound By Homeodomains, Regulation of Hox Genes, Colinearity of Hox Genes, Hox Nomenclature, Human Genes, History