Neurogenin-3 is a protein

Protein

Proteins are biochemical compounds consisting of one or more polypeptides typically folded into a globular or fibrous form, facilitating a biological function. A polypeptide is a single linear polymer chain of amino acids bonded together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of...

 that in humans is encoded by the NEUROG3 gene

Gene

A gene is a molecular unit of heredity of a living organism. It is a name given to some stretches of DNA and RNA that code for a type of protein or for an RNA chain that has a function in the organism. Living beings depend on genes, as they specify all proteins and functional RNA chains...

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Neurogenin-3 is expressed in endocrine progenitor cells and is required for endocrine cell development in the pancreas and intestine. It belongs to a family of basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH

Basic-helix-loop-helix

A basic helix-loop-helix is a protein structural motif that characterizes a family of transcription factors.- Structure :The motif is characterized by two α-helices connected by a loop. In general, transcription factors including this domain are dimeric, each with one helix containing basic amino...

) transcription factor

Transcription factor

In molecular biology and genetics, a transcription factor is a protein that binds to specific DNA sequences, thereby controlling the flow of genetic information from DNA to mRNA...

s involved in the determination of neural precursor cells in the neuroectoderm

Neuroectoderm

Neuroectoderm is the term for ectoderm which receives Bone Morphogenetic Protein-inhibiting signals from proteins such as noggin, which leads to the development of the nervous system from this tissue....

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In pancreas and brain the major splicing isoform does not code for a protein, potentially a regulatory mechanism as overexpression of the protein causes exit from cell cycle and depletion of the progenitor pool.