PACSIN 2, a novel member of the PACSIN family of cytoplasmic adapter proteins

The PACSIN-related proteins are cytoplasmic adapter proteins with a common arrangement of domains and conserved regions. Here we report the cloning, sequencing, and expression of PACSIN 2, a novel member of the PACSIN protein family and accordingly rename the original PACSIN to PACSIN 1. The sequences of the murine and human cDNAs reveal an open reading frame encoding a putative protein of 486 residues. Despite its high sequence similarity to PACSIN 1, PACSIN 2 is encoded by distinct transcripts in human and mouse, in particular displaying a ubiquitous expression pattern. Immunofluorescence microscopy of PACSIN 2-transfected NIH3T3 fibroblasts reveal a broad, vesicle-like cytoplasmic staining. In contrast to FAP52, another PACSIN-related protein derived from chicken brain, PACSIN 2 could not be detected at focal contacts. Taken together, these findings suggest that PACSIN 2 is a novel PACSIN isoform with similar domain and motif arrangement, but an unrestricted expression pattern, which may participate in the organization of the actin cytoskeleton and the regulation of vesicular traffic.