摘要：MYC is a basic domain helix-loop-helix leucine zipper (bHLH-LZ) transcriptional regulator that forms a heterodimer with the related but much smaller bHLH- LZ protein Max to bind sequence-specifically to DNA. In the last few years, the understanding of MYC action has undergone a complete transformation. Originally thought of as a conventional transcription factor with a large but limited number of distinct target genes, MYC has emerged as a transcriptional amplifier, whereby global transcription is tuned to specific cellular levels of MYC. Evidence for this universal involvement of MYC in transcription was originally obtained in studies of the protein-coding transcriptome [1, 2]. However, recent papers now extend MYC's broad activity to the entire non-coding transcriptome, showing that all non-coding RNAs are subject to MYC regulation [3, 4]. These data are in accord with the role of MYC as general transcriptional amplifier.
