Affinage

MAFB

Transcription factor MafB · UniProt Q9Y5Q3

Length
323 aa
Mass
35.8 kDa
Annotated
2026-04-28
100 papers in source corpus 46 papers cited in narrative 46 extracted findings

Mechanistic narrative

Synthesis pass · prose summary of the discoveries below

MAFB is a bZIP transcription factor that homodimerizes or heterodimerizes with Fos-family proteins to bind Maf-recognition elements (MAREs), functioning as a context-dependent transcriptional activator or repressor across a remarkably broad range of developmental and immunological programs (PMID:7935473, PMID:25005477). In hematopoietic lineages, MAFB drives monocyte-to-macrophage differentiation, promotes M2 macrophage polarization and foam-cell survival via LXR/AIM signaling, suppresses NLRP3 inflammasome activation through p62-dependent autophagy/mitophagy, antagonizes IRF3-coactivator interactions to dampen type I interferon responses, and cooperates with the glucocorticoid receptor and TET2 to establish tolerogenic dendritic cell identity (PMID:17548468, PMID:24445679, PMID:37845329, PMID:20581830, PMID:34893889). In endocrine and epithelial tissues, MAFB directly activates glucagon, Pdx1, and Nephrin promoters to govern pancreatic alpha-/beta-cell specification, podocyte differentiation, and epidermal keratinocyte terminal differentiation (PMID:16443760, PMID:17360442, PMID:16847325, PMID:25805135). Mutations in MAFB's transactivation domain cause Multicentric Carpotarsal Osteolysis through impaired negative regulation of osteoclastogenesis (PMID:24989131).

Mechanistic history

Synthesis pass · year-by-year structured walk · 14 steps
  1. 1994 High

    Establishing that MAFB functions as a bZIP transcription factor that homodimerizes and selectively heterodimerizes with Fos (not Jun) to bind MAREs and activate transcription answered the fundamental question of how this protein recognizes DNA and with which partners.

    Evidence Dimerization assays, EMSA, reporter assays, and transformation assay in chicken embryo fibroblasts

    PMID:7935473

    Open questions at the time
    • No crystal structure of MAFB homodimer or heterodimer on DNA
    • Endogenous target genes not yet identified
  2. 1996 High

    The discovery that MAFB physically interacts with Ets-1 via its bZIP domain and represses Ets-1 transactivation revealed that MAFB can function as a transcriptional repressor through protein-protein interactions independent of MARE binding, blocking erythroid differentiation.

    Evidence Yeast one-hybrid, co-IP, reporter assays, and erythroblast differentiation in cell line

    PMID:8620536

    Open questions at the time
    • Physiological relevance in primary erythroid cells not tested
    • Whether MAFB-Ets-1 interaction occurs genome-wide or at select loci unknown
  3. 2006 High

    Parallel studies established MAFB as a direct activator of glucagon gene transcription through a conserved promoter element and as essential for podocyte differentiation (with null mice showing proteinuria and reduced Nephrin/Podocin), answering what endogenous tissues and target genes require MAFB.

    Evidence Glucagon promoter deletion/reporter assays; Mafb-null mice with kidney histology and gene expression analysis

    PMID:16443760 PMID:16847325

    Open questions at the time
    • Direct ChIP at glucagon promoter not yet performed in this study
    • Mechanism of Nephrin/Podocin regulation not fully dissected
  4. 2007 High

    ChIP at endogenous Pdx1, Nkx6.1, and GLUT2 loci in the developing pancreas, combined with the null mutant phenotype, demonstrated that MAFB is a direct transcriptional regulator required for both insulin+ and glucagon+ cell production, extending its role beyond alpha-cells; simultaneously, SUMOylation at K32/K297 was shown to attenuate MAFB transactivation and mediate v-Myb repression, establishing a key post-translational regulatory mechanism.

    Evidence ChIP at endogenous loci in MafB-null pancreas; in vitro/in vivo SUMOylation assays with site-directed mutagenesis and differentiation readouts

    PMID:17360442 PMID:17548468

    Open questions at the time
    • Whether SUMOylation affects MAFB DNA-binding genome-wide unknown
    • SUMO E3 ligase specificity for MAFB not identified
  5. 2009 High

    Placing MAFB downstream of mTOR/C/EBPβ signaling as a negative regulator of osteoclastogenesis and downstream of TFE3 in hematopoietic cells defined the signaling inputs controlling MAFB expression in myeloid lineage decisions.

    Evidence C/EBPβ mutant and LIP knock-in mice with rapamycin; TFE3 EMSA/reporter assay with mutagenesis in hematopoietic cells

    PMID:19332055 PMID:19440205

    Open questions at the time
    • Direct C/EBPβ binding to MAFB promoter not shown by ChIP
    • How mTOR/C/EBPβ and TFE3 inputs are integrated at the MAFB locus unclear
  6. 2010 High

    The demonstration that MAFB antagonizes IRF3-coactivator interactions at the IFNB1 promoter revealed a dual-mode mechanism: MAFB first provides basal positive regulation via AP-1-like sites, then actively dampens virus-induced interferon responses by blocking coactivator recruitment, answering how MAFB modulates innate immunity.

    Evidence Reporter assays, promoter occupancy studies, coactivator interaction assays, mathematical modeling

    PMID:20581830

    Open questions at the time
    • Which specific coactivators are blocked not fully enumerated
    • In vivo antiviral phenotype of Mafb-deficient macrophages not shown in this study
  7. 2014 High

    Multiple concurrent discoveries broadened MAFB's functional scope: MafB/cJun heterodimers directly activate p63/p73 to drive apoptosis in limb morphogenesis, MAFB mediates LXR-dependent AIM expression for foam-cell survival in atherosclerosis, and MAFB directly activates MMP9 and IL-7R in macrophages through MARE elements, revealing heterodimer-specific transcriptional outputs and macrophage-specific target genes.

    Evidence ChIP-seq in chick limb buds; fetal liver reconstitution in LDLr-KO mice; EMSA/reporter in human macrophages

    PMID:24445679 PMID:24472656 PMID:25005477

    Open questions at the time
    • How heterodimer partner choice (Fos vs Jun) is regulated in vivo remains unclear
    • Whether AIM is a direct MAFB target or indirect via LXR not resolved
  8. 2015 High

    ChIP-seq in keratinocytes showed that MAF/MAFB directly binds loci of downstream transcription factors (GRHL3, ZNF750, KLF4, PRDM1) to drive epidermal differentiation, and VEGF-C/VEGFR-3 signaling was shown to rapidly induce MAFB in lymphatic endothelial cells where it activates PROX1, establishing MAFB as a master regulator in two new tissue contexts.

    Evidence ChIP-seq, loss/gain-of-function in keratinocytes, CAGE RNA-seq in LECs, Mafb-null embryo lymphatic analysis

    PMID:25805135 PMID:26549461

    Open questions at the time
    • Direct MAFB binding at PROX1 locus not confirmed by ChIP
    • Genome-wide MAFB binding in LECs not performed
  9. 2016 Medium

    Identification of MAFB transactivation domain mutations (aa 59-71) as causative for Multicentric Carpotarsal Osteolysis linked MAFB loss-of-function to a Mendelian skeletal disorder, while conditional PRLR-knockout studies placed MAFB downstream of prolactin signaling for gestational beta-cell expansion.

    Evidence Patient sequencing with domain mapping; conditional PRLR and MafB KO mice with glucose tolerance testing

    PMID:24989131 PMID:27217483

    Open questions at the time
    • No direct functional assay of MCTO mutations on osteoclastogenesis in this study
    • MAFB transcriptional targets mediating beta-cell proliferation not identified
  10. 2018 High

    MAFB was shown to enhance Notch1 signaling in T-ALL by recruiting coactivators PCAF/P300 through ETS2 interaction, and conditional adult alpha-cell knockout confirmed MAFB is continuously required for glucagon expression and alpha-cell identity, not just during development.

    Evidence Co-IP of MAFB-ETS2-PCAF/P300, reporter assays, shRNA in T-ALL cells; tamoxifen-inducible Mafb KO with arginine stimulation tests

    PMID:29138297 PMID:29378833

    Open questions at the time
    • Whether MAFB-PCAF/P300 interaction is direct or bridged entirely by ETS2 not resolved
    • Genome-wide MAFB targets in adult alpha-cells not mapped
  11. 2019 High

    MAFB was established as a regulator of cortical interneuron specification (compensatory with c-Maf in repressing SST+ interneuron generation, with distinct postnatal roles in maturation) and of spinal microglial activation in neuropathic pain, expanding its neural functions.

    Evidence Conditional single/double KO mice with MGE-specific Cre, electrophysiology; heterozygous/conditional Mafb KO with nerve injury model and intrathecal microglia transfer

    PMID:30485546 PMID:30699346

    Open questions at the time
    • Direct transcriptional targets of MAFB in microglia driving pain sensitization not identified
    • Mechanism by which MAFB and c-Maf achieve compensatory vs distinct functions unclear
  12. 2020 High

    Lymphatic-specific conditional knockout confirmed MAFB controls lymphatic vascular morphogenesis cell-autonomously, and human PSC knockout demonstrated a species-specific requirement for MAFB in human insulin+ and glucagon+ cell differentiation, while Maf/Mafb double-KO revealed Mef2c and Snap25 as key targets for interneuron maturation.

    Evidence Prox1-Cre conditional KO with tumor lymphangiogenesis model; CRISPR KO in hPSCs with endocrine differentiation; conditional double KO with scRNA-seq

    PMID:32307629 PMID:32452758 PMID:32488111

    Open questions at the time
    • MAFB binding sites at Mef2c and Snap25 loci not confirmed by ChIP
    • Human-specific MAFB targets in beta-cell specification not mapped
  13. 2022 High

    The finding that MAFB interacts with TET2 and the glucocorticoid receptor to drive site-specific DNA demethylation during tolerogenic dendritic cell differentiation revealed a novel epigenetic mechanism through which MAFB shapes immune cell identity.

    Evidence Co-IP of GR-MAFB-TET2, ChIP-seq, ATAC-seq, RRBS methylation profiling, MAFB knockdown in tolDCs

    PMID:34893889

    Open questions at the time
    • Whether MAFB-TET2 interaction is direct or mediated by GR not resolved
    • Catalytic dependence of TET2 on MAFB binding not tested
  14. 2023 High

    Two studies established that MAFB controls the monocyte-to-interstitial macrophage transition during lung niche refilling and suppresses NLRP3 inflammasome activation by sustaining p62-dependent autophagy/mitophagy, providing mechanistic depth to its anti-inflammatory role.

    Evidence scRNA-seq with conditional KO and bone marrow chimeras in lung IM refilling model; conditional KO macrophages with inflammasome assays, mitochondrial ROS measurement, and in vivo LPS/infection models

    PMID:36928411 PMID:37845329

    Open questions at the time
    • Whether MAFB directly binds the p62/SQSTM1 promoter not shown
    • How MAFB integrates autophagy regulation with its other macrophage functions unclear

Open questions

Synthesis pass · forward-looking unresolved questions
  • Key unresolved questions include: (1) how heterodimer partner selection (Fos, Jun, Ets, ETS2) is regulated in different cellular contexts; (2) the structural basis of MAFB DNA-binding and partner discrimination; (3) genome-wide direct target identification by ChIP-seq in macrophages, alpha-cells, and microglia; and (4) the interplay between SUMOylation, proteasomal degradation, and MAFB's transcriptional output in vivo.
  • No crystal or cryo-EM structure of MAFB
  • No integrated genome-wide binding and expression dataset across multiple MAFB-dependent cell types
  • SUMO/ubiquitin cross-regulation of MAFB activity not dissected in vivo

Mechanism profile

Synthesis pass · controlled-vocabulary classification · explore literature graph →
Molecular activity
GO:0140110 transcription regulator activity 8 GO:0003677 DNA binding 6
Localization
GO:0005634 nucleus 5
Pathway
R-HSA-74160 Gene expression (Transcription) 7 R-HSA-1266738 Developmental Biology 6 R-HSA-168256 Immune System 6 R-HSA-162582 Signal Transduction 4 R-HSA-5357801 Programmed Cell Death 2 R-HSA-9612973 Autophagy 1
Partners
CREBBPEP300ETS1ETS2FOSKAT2BMAFTET2

Evidence

Reading pass · 46 per-paper findings extracted from the source corpus
Year Finding Method Journal Conf PMIDs
1996 MafB directly interacts with the DNA-binding domain of Ets-1 via its basic region/leucine-zipper domain, repressing Ets-1 transactivation of synthetic promoters containing Ets binding sites and inhibiting Ets-1-mediated transactivation of the transferrin receptor gene, thereby blocking erythroid differentiation. Yeast one-hybrid screen, co-immunoprecipitation/interaction assays, transactivation reporter assays, overexpression in erythroblast cell line Cell High 8620536
1994 MafB forms homodimers through its leucine zipper and binds Maf-recognition elements (MAREs); it forms heterodimers with v-Maf and Fos but not Jun; acts as a transcriptional activator at MARE-linked promoters and transforms chicken embryo fibroblasts. Dimerization assays, DNA-binding assays (EMSA), transient cotransfection reporter assays, transformation assay in chicken embryo fibroblasts Molecular and cellular biology High 7935473
2007 SUMO-1 modifies MafB in vitro and in vivo on lysines 32 and 297; SUMOylation reduces MafB transactivation capacity and macrophage differentiation potential, and is required for v-Myb-mediated repression of MafB, thereby controlling the balance between myeloid progenitor expansion and terminal macrophage differentiation. In vitro SUMOylation assay, in vivo SUMO modification confirmed by immunoprecipitation, site-directed mutagenesis (K32R K297R), functional differentiation assays, inducible Myb allele system Molecular and cellular biology High 17548468
2004 ERK-induced MafB/Kreisler cooperates with GATA and Ets transcription factors to activate the megakaryocyte GPIIb/CD41 promoter; MafB is induced by ERK signaling during megakaryocyte differentiation and is required for GPIIb promoter transactivation within the proximal 114 bp. Promoter deletion/mutation reporter assays, dominant-negative and antisense suppression of MafB, ERK activation experiments, transactivation assays Molecular and cellular biology High 15121870
2006 MafB is required for podocyte (glomerular visceral epithelial cell) differentiation; MafB-null mice show proteinuria, foot process effacement, and reduced expression of Podocin and Nephrin, acting downstream of Pod1 transcription factor. Mafb/GFP knock-in null mutant mice, histology, immunofluorescence, gene expression analysis, genetic epistasis with Pod1 Molecular and cellular biology High 16847325
2006 MafB activates glucagon gene transcription through a conserved control element between nucleotides -77 to -51 of the glucagon promoter in islet alpha-cells; MafB is also expressed in developing alpha- and beta-cells. Reporter assays with glucagon promoter deletion constructs, immunohistochemistry, transgenic mouse analysis (Pax4 and Pax6 knockouts) Diabetes High 16443760
2007 MafB is required for production of insulin+ and glucagon+ cells during pancreatic development and directly regulates transcription of Pdx1, Nkx6.1, and GLUT2 by binding within their endogenous control region sequences. MafB-null (kreisler) mouse analysis, chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) at Pdx1, Nkx6.1, GLUT2 control regions, immunohistochemistry, in situ hybridization Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America High 17360442
2008 MafA and MafB regulate beta-cell-enriched Pdx1 expression exclusively through the Area II control region (-2153/-1923); MafA is bound to Area II in adult beta-cells by ChIP, and MafB binding was detected at Area II at embryonic day 18.5. Transient transfection reporter assays, quantitative ChIP, transgenic mouse analysis in MafB-/- background The Journal of biological chemistry High 18522939
2010 MafB acts as a transcriptional antagonist of antiviral type I interferon responses by blocking recruitment of coactivators to IRF3 at the IFNB1 promoter; MafB first acts as a weak positive basal regulator at AP-1-like sites, then upon interferon elicitor-induced IRF3 recruitment, MafB impairs IRF3-coactivator interactions. Reporter assays, promoter occupancy experiments, mathematical modeling, coactivator interaction assays Nature immunology High 20581830
2009 C/EBPβ isoform ratio (LAP vs. LIP), controlled by mTOR-dependent alternative translation, regulates osteoclastogenesis by modulating MafB expression; the LAP isoform promotes MafB expression while LIP suppresses it, placing MafB downstream of the mTOR/C/EBPβ pathway as a negative regulator of osteoclastogenesis. C/EBPβ mutant mouse strains, LIP knock-in mice, rapamycin treatment, MafB promoter reporter assays, ectopic expression of LAP/LIP in monocytes The EMBO journal High 19440205
2014 MafB promotes foam-cell survival by mediating LXR/RXR-induced expression of the apoptosis inhibitor AIM; in the absence of MafB, activated LXR/RXR fails to induce AIM expression, rendering macrophages prone to apoptosis and attenuating early atherosclerotic lesion formation. Mafb-deficient fetal liver cell hematopoietic reconstitution in LDL receptor-deficient mice, gene expression analysis, loss-of-function in macrophages Nature communications High 24445679
2013 Mafb drives postsynaptic density (PSD) formation in auditory ribbon synapses within spiral ganglion neurons (SGNs); Mafb acts downstream of the Gata3 transcriptional network, and restoration of Mafb rescues synapse defects in Gata3 mutants. Mafb mutant mouse analysis, synapse counting, electrophysiology (auditory brainstem responses), Gata3 mutant rescue by Mafb restoration, gain-of-function (increased Mafb accelerates synaptogenesis) eLife High 24327562
2012 MafB expression in hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells imposes an epigenetic (DNA methylation) program that is preserved in mature B cells, providing a novel mechanism for plasma cell neoplasia initiation. Transgenic mice expressing MafB in HS/PCs, genome-scale DNA methylation profiling, gene expression profiling, comparison to human multiple myeloma gene signatures The EMBO journal Medium 22903061
2010 Cdx1 directly represses early Mafb expression in the neural tube posterior to the r6/r7 boundary by binding to regulatory sequences within the Mafb locus, thereby defining the posterior Mafb expression boundary in hindbrain patterning. Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP), in situ hybridization, immunofluorescence, regulatory sequence analysis, Cdx1 mutant mouse analysis Development (Cambridge, England) High 21098558
2015 MAFB is necessary and sufficient for epidermal progenitor differentiation; MAF:MAFB regulates 393 genes and binds (by ChIP-seq) to loci of downstream TFs including GRHL3, ZNF750, KLF4, and PRDM1; ANCR and TINCR lncRNAs act as upstream regulators of MAF:MAFB. Loss-of-function/gain-of-function in keratinocytes, kinetic transcriptome analysis, ChIP-seq for MAF:MAFB binding, epistasis with downstream TFs, lncRNA knockdown Developmental cell High 25805135
2014 MafB/cFos heterodimers repress apoptosis while MafB/cJun heterodimers promote apoptosis in developing chick limb buds; MafB/cJun directly activates p63 and p73 expression to arrest the cell cycle and drive apoptosis during limb morphogenesis. ChIP-seq in chick limb buds, functional overexpression/knockdown, reporter assays, immunostaining for apoptosis markers Development (Cambridge, England) High 25005477
2010 HTLV-1 HBZ heterodimerizes with MafB via each bZIP domain, abrogates MafB DNA-binding activity at MARE elements, and reduces steady-state MafB protein levels via the proteasome pathway. Yeast two-hybrid screen, co-immunoprecipitation, luciferase reporter assays, proteasome inhibitor treatment, EMSA (MARE-bound MafB) Journal of cellular biochemistry Medium 20506502
2000 The mouse mafB promoter contains TATA-like, CCAAT-box, GC-box elements, and palindromic MAREs/E-box sequences; MyoD activates the mafB promoter and MafB positively auto-regulates its own expression through these elements. Transient transfection reporter assays with 5'-flanking region deletions, cotransfection with MyoD, RNase protection for transcription start site Gene Medium 10721736
2008 The vitamin D3 monocyte differentiation pathway operates through a transactivation cascade: vitamin D3 receptor → Hox-A10 → MafB; Hox-A10 directly binds to a conserved site in the MafB promoter to upregulate MafB expression during monocyte differentiation. EMSA identifying Hox-A10 binding site in MafB promoter, luciferase reporter assays with promoter deletion/mutation, retroviral Hox-A10 transduction in human CD34+ progenitors, qRT-PCR Journal of immunology Medium 18832725
2009 TFE3 transcription factor directly activates MAFB expression by binding an EBox in the MAFB promoter; EBox deletion or mutation abolishes TFE3-mediated transactivation of the MAFB promoter. EMSA identifying TFE3-binding EBox in MAFB promoter, luciferase reporter assays, TFE3 ectopic expression and siRNA silencing in hematopoietic cells Experimental cell research Medium 19332055
2014 MafB promotes macrophage M2 polarization and cholesterol efflux from foam cells by directly upregulating key mediators of cholesterol efflux; MafB is itself regulated by metabolic/immunological stimuli including LXR-dependent and LXR-independent pathways, and is suppressed by miR-155 and miR-33. MafB overexpression/knockdown in macrophages, cholesterol efflux assays, gene expression analysis, miRNA regulation assays Scientific reports Medium 28790455
2016 Prolactin receptor (PRLR) signaling in maternal beta-cells is required for transient gestational expression of MafB in a subset of beta-cells; MafB deletion in maternal beta-cells causes gestational diabetes with inadequate beta-cell expansion and failure to induce PRLR-dependent target genes. Conditional PRLR and MafB knockout mice (floxed alleles), beta-cell-specific Cre, glucose tolerance testing, BrdU proliferation assay, gene expression analysis Diabetes High 27217483
2014 MafB directly regulates Nephrin expression in podocytes (demonstrated by reporter assay); MafB overexpression in podocytes ameliorates diabetic nephropathy by maintaining Nephrin expression, upregulating glutathione peroxidase, and modulating Notch2 signaling. Nephrin promoter reporter assay, transgenic mice overexpressing Mafb in podocytes (nephrin promoter), streptozotocin-induced diabetes model, histology, biochemical assays Journal of the American Society of Nephrology Medium 24722438
2016 MafB acts as a transcriptional regulator of epidermal keratinocyte differentiation; MafB-deficient mice show reduced expression of cornified envelope genes (filaggrin, repetin) and increased expression of lipid metabolism genes (Alox12e, Smpd3), with the upregulated genes enriched for targets of Gata3, Grhl3, and Klf4. MafB-knockout mouse analysis, transcriptional profiling, in vitro human keratinocyte differentiation, immunohistochemistry The Journal of investigative dermatology Medium 27208706
2018 MafB is a critical regulator of glucagon expression and alpha-cell function in adult mice; MafB directly regulates glucagon gene expression, arginine transporter gene expression (affecting arginine-stimulated glucagon secretion), and alpha-cell identity maintenance. Endocrine cell-specific and tamoxifen-inducible Mafb knockout mice, gene expression analysis, hormone measurement, arginine stimulation tests Molecular and cellular biology High 29378833
2015 MAFB is rapidly induced by VEGF-C/VEGFR-3 signaling in lymphatic endothelial cells (LECs) and induces expression of PROX1 and other lymphatic differentiation markers; global Mafb-/- embryos show impaired lymphatic patterning in the skin. CAGE RNA-seq in LECs stimulated with VEGF-C, Mafb-null mouse analysis (E14.5 embryos), gene expression analysis Cell reports Medium 26549461
2020 LEC-intrinsic MAFB controls lymphatic vascular morphogenesis during embryogenesis and tumor-induced lymphangiogenesis; conditional lymphatic-specific Mafb knockout shows increased lymphatic branching and enhanced tumor lymphangiogenesis. Conditional lymphatic-specific Mafb knockout mice (Prox1-Cre), embryonic lymphatic analysis, tumor implantation model, histology Angiogenesis High 32307629
2018 MafB drives cardiac neural crest transcription factor Sox10 expression; in MafB morphant chick embryos, Sox10 expression is specifically reduced in the cardiac neural crest. Transcriptome analysis of isolated cardiac neural crest (FoxD3-enhancer driven), MafB loss-of-function (morpholino), in situ hybridization for Sox10 Developmental biology Medium 30236445
2017 MAFB enhances oncogenic Notch1 signaling in T-ALL by binding ETS2 and interacting with acetyltransferases PCAF and P300, thereby recruiting coactivators to the Notch transcriptional complex; MAFB knockdown reduces expression of Notch1 targets MYC and HES1. Gain-of-function screen, co-immunoprecipitation of MAFB with ETS2 and PCAF/P300, luciferase reporter assays, mouse T-ALL models, shRNA knockdown in human T-ALL cells Science signaling High 29138297
2016 MAFB can be SUMOylated by SUMO1 at lysine 32, and this modification is critical for cell cycle regulation by MAFB in colorectal cancer cells; SUMOylated MAFB directly regulates CDK6 transcription by binding its promoter. SUMO modification assays, K32 mutagenesis, ChIP for MAFB binding to CDK6 promoter, shRNA knockdown, xenograft in vivo tumor growth assays Oncotarget Medium 27829226
2014 MafB is a direct transcriptional activator of MMP9 and IL-7R genes in human macrophages through MARE elements in their promoters; MafB is a downstream target of the IL-10/STAT3 signaling pathway that controls macrophage de-activation. EMSA and luciferase reporter assays for direct MARE-mediated activation, MafB inactivation/overexpression, IL-10/STAT3 pathway analysis in primary human macrophages Biochimica et biophysica acta Medium 24472656
2021 COX-2/PGE2/EP4 signaling in kidney macrophages induces MafB expression following acute kidney injury; myeloid MafB deletion recapitulates myeloid COX-2 or EP4 deletion phenotypes (delayed recovery, persistent inflammation, increased fibrosis), placing MafB downstream of PGE2/EP4 as an anti-inflammatory mediator. Myeloid-specific COX-2, EP4, and Mafb conditional knockout mice, acute kidney injury model, gene expression analysis, histology Kidney international High 34774558
2022 MAFB acts in synergy with the glucocorticoid receptor (GR) to drive tolerogenic dendritic cell differentiation; GR and MAFB both interact with methylcytosine dioxygenase TET2 and co-bind genomic loci undergoing specific demethylation; MAFB knockdown erases the tolerogenic phenotype and reverts specific DNA demethylation. Co-immunoprecipitation of GR and MAFB with TET2, ChIP-seq, ATAC-seq, RRBS methylation profiling, MAFB knockdown in tolDCs, transcriptome analysis Nucleic acids research High 34893889
2023 MafB controls the transition from monocyte proliferation to lung interstitial macrophage (IM) subset specification during IM niche refilling; c-Maf specifically regulates the identity of the CD206+ IM subset downstream or in parallel to MafB. Inducible lung IM niche depletion/refilling model, time-course scRNA-seq, bone marrow chimeras, gene targeting (Mafb conditional KO), Csf1r inhibition Nature immunology High 36928411
2023 MafB sustains p62 expression in macrophages, thereby maintaining autophagy/mitophagy, inhibiting mitochondrial damage and ROS production, and negatively regulating NLRP3 inflammasome activation; MafB protein is rapidly degraded by the ubiquitin/proteasome system. MafB knockdown and conditional KO macrophages, NLRP3 inflammasome activation assays, mitochondrial ROS and DNA assays, p62 expression analysis, in vivo LPS/infection models Communications biology High 37845329
2019 miR-320a directly targets MafB mRNA (validated by AGO2 co-immunoprecipitation, luciferase reporter assay, and Western blotting); miR-320a-induced downregulation of MafB causes podocyte loss and dysfunction by reducing Nephrin and Gpx3 expression. AGO2 co-immunoprecipitation, luciferase 3'UTR reporter assay, Western blotting, adeno-associated viral delivery in db/db mice, MafB re-expression rescue Aging Medium 31102503
2017 MafB directly regulates parathyroid hormone (PTH) and cyclin D2 expression in parathyroid glands, as shown by reporter assay; MafB heterozygosity suppresses secondary hyperparathyroidism in a CKD mouse model. MafB heterozygous and tamoxifen-inducible KO mice, adenine-CKD model, promoter reporter assays for PTH and cyclin D2, RNA-seq of parathyroid glands Kidney international Medium 28964572
2020 MAFB knockout in human pluripotent stem cells (via CRISPR/Cas9) does not affect pancreatic progenitor specification but specifically impairs insulin- and glucagon-producing cell formation at the endocrine differentiation stage, favoring somatostatin- and pancreatic polypeptide-positive cells instead. CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing of hPSCs, endocrine differentiation protocol, immunostaining and flow cytometry for hormone-positive cell types Nature communications High 32488111
2019 MafB contributes to spinal microglial activation underlying neuropathic pain development; peripheral nerve injury increases MafB expression in spinal microglia (mediated partly by decreased miR-152), and MafB deficiency (heterozygous mice, siRNA, or conditional KO) alleviates mechanical hypersensitivity. Heterozygous Mafb-deficient mice, siRNA intrathecal delivery, conditional Mafb KO mice, intrathecal transfer of Mafb-deficient microglia, peripheral nerve injury model Glia High 30485546
2019 Mafb and c-Maf have compensatory prenatal roles in repressing SST+ cortical interneuron generation from MGE secondary progenitors, and distinct postnatal roles in interneuron morphological maturation and synaptogenesis. Conditional single and double Mafb/c-Maf KO mice (MGE-specific Cre), interneuron counting, morphological analysis, electrophysiology Cell reports High 30699346
2016 MAFB mutations in the transactivation domain (amino acids 59-71) cause Multicentric Carpotarsal Osteolysis by reducing MAFB's ability to negatively regulate RANKL-mediated osteoclastogenesis; all pathogenic MAFB mutations cluster in this 13 amino acid stretch. Sequencing of MCTO patients, identification of domain-specific mutations, functional context from prior work on MAFB as negative regulator of RANKL-induced osteoclastogenesis American journal of medical genetics. Part A Medium 24989131
2018 A MAFB p.Leu239Pro substitution in the DNA-binding domain significantly reduces transactivation of the F4/80 promoter (a known MAFB recognition element) in cultured monocytes and impairs podocyte differentiation in neonatal mice. Luciferase transactivation assay in monocytes, immunohistochemistry of patient podocytes, podocyte differentiation assay in neonatal mice, structural modeling Kidney international Medium 29779709
2014 Androgen receptor (AR) signaling is necessary for Mafb expression in male genital tubercle mesenchyme; Mafb is required for embryonic urethral masculinization, and androgen treatment fails to induce urethral masculinization in Mafb-null male mice. Mafb KO mice, AR KO mice, exogenous androgen treatment, morphological and gene expression analysis of genital tubercles Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America High 25362053
2015 Androgen regulates Mafb expression through two functional androgen response elements (AREs) in the Mafb 3'UTR; androgen receptor binds these AREs in vivo during urethral masculinization; β-catenin is an additional regulator of Mafb expression. Luciferase reporter assays with Mafb 3'UTR, chromatin immunoprecipitation of AR at Mafb 3'UTR AREs in vivo, β-catenin cotransfection assays Endocrinology Medium 26636186
2008 MAFB ectopic expression in multiple myeloma cell lines (inducible system) upregulates 284 transcripts including 14 genes also activated by C-MAF; functional promoter assays confirm MAFB directly drives these target gene promoters; MAFB expression confers antiapoptotic effects. Inducible MAFB expression system, microarray profiling, promoter reporter assays, comparison with ex vivo MM gene expression data Experimental hematology Medium 19013005
2020 Maf and Mafb positively regulate Mef2c and Snap25 to drive cortical interneuron morphological maturation; Maf and Mafb promote Mef2c expression to specify parvalbumin+ interneurons; conditional double KO decreases cortical interneuron survival and alters physiological properties. Conditional double KO (Maf and Mafb) with MGE-specific Cre, scRNA-seq, gene expression validation, electrophysiology eLife High 32452758

Source papers

Stage 0 corpus · 100 papers · ranked by NIH iCite citations
Year Title Journal Citations PMID
2010 A genome-wide association study of cleft lip with and without cleft palate identifies risk variants near MAFB and ABCA4. Nature genetics 482 20436469
1996 MafB is an interaction partner and repressor of Ets-1 that inhibits erythroid differentiation. Cell 255 8620536
2006 A switch from MafB to MafA expression accompanies differentiation to pancreatic beta-cells. Developmental biology 240 16580660
1994 MafB, a new Maf family transcription activator that can associate with Maf and Fos but not with Jun. Molecular and cellular biology 210 7935473
2007 MafB is required for islet beta cell maturation. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 199 17360442
2010 MafA and MafB regulate genes critical to beta-cells in a unique temporal manner. Diabetes 197 20627934
2006 MafB is essential for renal development and F4/80 expression in macrophages. Molecular and cellular biology 175 16847325
2011 MafA and MafB activity in pancreatic β cells. Trends in endocrinology and metabolism: TEM 172 21719305
2006 MafB: an activator of the glucagon gene expressed in developing islet alpha- and beta-cells. Diabetes 165 16443760
2015 A LncRNA-MAF:MAFB transcription factor network regulates epidermal differentiation. Developmental cell 161 25805135
2016 Gestational Diabetes Mellitus From Inactivation of Prolactin Receptor and MafB in Islet β-Cells. Diabetes 113 27217483
2009 Transcription factor C/EBPbeta isoform ratio regulates osteoclastogenesis through MafB. The EMBO journal 111 19440205
2022 Activation of RARα Receptor Attenuates Neuroinflammation After SAH via Promoting M1-to-M2 Phenotypic Polarization of Microglia and Regulating Mafb/Msr1/PI3K-Akt/NF-κB Pathway. Frontiers in immunology 99 35237277
2017 The transcription factor MafB promotes anti-inflammatory M2 polarization and cholesterol efflux in macrophages. Scientific reports 99 28790455
2002 The mouse Kreisler (Krml1/MafB) segmentation gene is required for differentiation of glomerular visceral epithelial cells. Developmental biology 97 12217315
2014 MafB promotes atherosclerosis by inhibiting foam-cell apoptosis. Nature communications 93 24445679
2023 MafB-restricted local monocyte proliferation precedes lung interstitial macrophage differentiation. Nature immunology 84 36928411
2001 Ectopic expression of MAFB gene in human myeloma cells carrying (14;20)(q32;q11) chromosomal translocations. Japanese journal of cancer research : Gann 79 11429052
2013 A Gata3-Mafb transcriptional network directs post-synaptic differentiation in synapses specialized for hearing. eLife 70 24327562
2010 The transcription factor MafB antagonizes antiviral responses by blocking recruitment of coactivators to the transcription factor IRF3. Nature immunology 67 20581830
2016 Loss of MAFB Function in Humans and Mice Causes Duane Syndrome, Aberrant Extraocular Muscle Innervation, and Inner-Ear Defects. American journal of human genetics 66 27181683
2000 Hindbrain patterning: FGFs regulate Krox20 and mafB/kr expression in the otic/preotic region. Development (Cambridge, England) 66 11044406
2023 Single nucleus multiomics identifies ZEB1 and MAFB as candidate regulators of Alzheimer's disease-specific cis-regulatory elements. Cell genomics 63 36950385
1998 Defined concentrations of a posteriorizing signal are critical for MafB/Kreisler segmental expression in the hindbrain. Development (Cambridge, England) 62 9477316
2019 Role of MafB in macrophages. Experimental animals 58 31582643
2014 Sexually dimorphic expression of Mafb regulates masculinization of the embryonic urethral formation. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 58 25362053
2012 A novel molecular mechanism involved in multiple myeloma development revealed by targeting MafB to haematopoietic progenitors. The EMBO journal 58 22903061
2018 A mutation in transcription factor MAFB causes Focal Segmental Glomerulosclerosis with Duane Retraction Syndrome. Kidney international 57 29779709
2003 Novel activities of Mafb underlie its dual role in hindbrain segmentation and regional specification. Developmental biology 56 12490204
2020 Loss of the transcription factor MAFB limits β-cell derivation from human PSCs. Nature communications 51 32488111
2019 MiR-320a induces diabetic nephropathy via inhibiting MafB. Aging 50 31102503
2015 The MAFB transcription factor impacts islet α-cell function in rodents and represents a unique signature of primate islet β-cells. American journal of physiology. Endocrinology and metabolism 50 26554594
2018 Transcription factor MafB contributes to the activation of spinal microglia underlying neuropathic pain development. Glia 47 30485546
2017 Hyperlipidemia-Induced MicroRNA-155-5p Improves β-Cell Function by Targeting Mafb. Diabetes 47 28970282
2019 Mafb and c-Maf Have Prenatal Compensatory and Postnatal Antagonistic Roles in Cortical Interneuron Fate and Function. Cell reports 46 30699346
2008 Identification of primary MAFB target genes in multiple myeloma. Experimental hematology 46 19013005
2015 MiR-223 targeting MAFB suppresses proliferation and migration of nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells. BMC cancer 45 26055874
2004 Extracellular signal-regulated kinase induces the megakaryocyte GPIIb/CD41 gene through MafB/Kreisler. Molecular and cellular biology 45 15121870
2007 Preferential reduction of beta cells derived from Pax6-MafB pathway in MafB deficient mice. Developmental biology 44 18199433
2020 MAFB Promotes Cancer Stemness and Tumorigenesis in Osteosarcoma through a Sox9-Mediated Positive Feedback Loop. Cancer research 43 32234710
2018 MafB Is Critical for Glucagon Production and Secretion in Mouse Pancreatic α Cells In Vivo. Molecular and cellular biology 43 29378833
2016 Transcription Factor MafB Coordinates Epidermal Keratinocyte Differentiation. The Journal of investigative dermatology 43 27208706
2004 The recurrent translocation t(14;20)(q32;q12) in multiple myeloma results in aberrant expression of MAFB: a molecular and genetic analysis of the chromosomal breakpoint. British journal of haematology 43 15257707
2015 DeepCAGE Transcriptomics Reveal an Important Role of the Transcription Factor MAFB in the Lymphatic Endothelium. Cell reports 39 26549461
2006 Expression of a novel gene, MafB, in Dupuytren's disease. The Journal of hand surgery 39 16473681
2007 SUMO modification regulates MafB-driven macrophage differentiation by enabling Myb-dependent transcriptional repression. Molecular and cellular biology 38 17548468
2020 miR-155 Knockdown Protects against Cerebral Ischemia and Reperfusion Injury by Targeting MafB. BioMed research international 37 32090104
2018 Examining How the MAFB Transcription Factor Affects Islet β-Cell Function Postnatally. Diabetes 37 30425060
2014 Multicentric carpotarsal osteolysis syndrome is caused by only a few domain-specific mutations in MAFB, a negative regulator of RANKL-induced osteoclastogenesis. American journal of medical genetics. Part A 37 24989131
2013 The identification of MAFB mutations in eight patients with multicentric carpo-tarsal osteolysis supports genetic homogeneity but clinical variability. American journal of medical genetics. Part A 35 23956186
1999 Human KRML (MAFB): cDNA cloning, genomic structure, and evaluation as a candidate tumor suppressor gene in myeloid leukemias. Genomics 35 10444328
2014 Overexpression of Mafb in podocytes protects against diabetic nephropathy. Journal of the American Society of Nephrology : JASN 33 24722438
2010 Cdx1 refines positional identity of the vertebrate hindbrain by directly repressing Mafb expression. Development (Cambridge, England) 33 21098558
2008 MafA and MafB regulate Pdx1 transcription through the Area II control region in pancreatic beta cells. The Journal of biological chemistry 32 18522939
2020 Lymphatic MAFB regulates vascular patterning during developmental and pathological lymphangiogenesis. Angiogenesis 31 32307629
2016 Differential expression patterns of MafB and c-Maf in macrophages in vivo and in vitro. Biochemical and biophysical research communications 31 26996125
2011 Reexpression of oncoprotein MafB in proliferative β-cells and Men1 insulinomas in mouse. Oncogene 31 22120711
2022 Coordinated glucocorticoid receptor and MAFB action induces tolerogenesis and epigenome remodeling in dendritic cells. Nucleic acids research 30 34893889
2021 Myeloid cyclooxygenase-2/prostaglandin E2/E-type prostanoid receptor 4 promotes transcription factor MafB-dependent inflammatory resolution in acute kidney injury. Kidney international 30 34774558
2020 RECQL4, Negatively Regulated by miR-10a-5p, Facilitates Cell Proliferation and Invasion via MAFB in Ovarian Cancer. Frontiers in oncology 30 33014878
2006 Enhanced expression of MafB inhibits macrophage apoptosis induced by cigarette smoke exposure. American journal of respiratory cell and molecular biology 30 17079784
2020 MAFB and MAF Transcription Factors as Macrophage Checkpoints for COVID-19 Severity. Frontiers in immunology 29 33312178
2014 MafB is a downstream target of the IL-10/STAT3 signaling pathway, involved in the regulation of macrophage de-activation. Biochimica et biophysica acta 29 24472656
2011 Rapamycin inhibits osteoclast formation in giant cell tumor of bone through the C/EBPβ - MafB axis. Journal of molecular medicine (Berlin, Germany) 29 22071989
2020 MicroRNA-148a facilitates inflammatory dendritic cell differentiation and autoimmunity by targeting MAFB. JCI insight 28 32213710
2015 Beta-cell regeneration from vimentin+/MafB+ cells after STZ-induced extreme beta-cell ablation. Scientific reports 27 26129776
2020 Maf and Mafb control mouse pallial interneuron fate and maturation through neuropsychiatric disease gene regulation. eLife 26 32452758
2014 Dimeric combinations of MafB, cFos and cJun control the apoptosis-survival balance in limb morphogenesis. Development (Cambridge, England) 26 25005477
2015 Androgen Regulates Mafb Expression Through its 3'UTR During Mouse Urethral Masculinization. Endocrinology 25 26636186
2010 HTLV-1 basic leucine-zipper factor, HBZ, interacts with MafB and suppresses transcription through a Maf recognition element. Journal of cellular biochemistry 25 20506502
2009 Neither MafA/L-Maf nor MafB is essential for lens development in mice. Genes to cells : devoted to molecular & cellular mechanisms 25 19624757
2008 The vitamin D3/Hox-A10 pathway supports MafB function during the monocyte differentiation of human CD34+ hemopoietic progenitors. Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950) 25 18832725
2018 Transcriptome profiling of the cardiac neural crest reveals a critical role for MafB. Developmental biology 24 30236445
2000 Molecular cloning and functional characterization of the mouse mafB gene. Gene 24 10721736
2011 High MafB expression following burn augments monocyte commitment and inhibits DC differentiation in hemopoietic progenitors. Journal of leukocyte biology 23 21984745
2016 Perturbed MafB/GATA1 axis after burn trauma bares the potential mechanism for immune suppression and anemia of critical illness. Journal of leukocyte biology 22 26992433
1997 MafB represses erythroid genes and differentiation through direct interaction with c-Ets-1. Leukemia 22 9209434
2019 MafB Is Important for Pancreatic β-Cell Maintenance under a MafA-Deficient Condition. Molecular and cellular biology 21 31208980
2016 SUMOylated MAFB promotes colorectal cancer tumorigenesis. Oncotarget 21 27829226
2013 An incompletely penetrant novel MAFB (p.Ser56Phe) variant in autosomal dominant multicentric carpotarsal osteolysis syndrome. International journal of molecular medicine 21 23670161
2020 Transcription factor MafB in podocytes protects against the development of focal segmental glomerulosclerosis. Kidney international 20 32622525
2016 Transcription Factor MafB Promotes Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cell Proliferation through Up-Regulation of Cyclin D1. Cellular physiology and biochemistry : international journal of experimental cellular physiology, biochemistry, and pharmacology 20 27448450
2012 Loss of p53 exacerbates multiple myeloma phenotype by facilitating the reprogramming of hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells to malignant plasma cells by MafB. Cell cycle (Georgetown, Tex.) 20 22983007
2009 TFE3 transcription factor regulates the expression of MAFB during macrophage differentiation. Experimental cell research 19 19332055
2023 Inhibition of LXR controls the polarization of human inflammatory macrophages through upregulation of MAFB. Cellular and molecular life sciences : CMLS 18 36930354
2022 MAFA and MAFB regulate exocytosis-related genes in human β-cells. Acta physiologica (Oxford, England) 18 34978761
2018 MiRNA-199a-5p positively regulated RANKL-induced osteoclast differentiation by target Mafb protein. Journal of cellular biochemistry 18 30387167
2016 The role of macrophage transcription factor MafB in atherosclerotic plaque stability. Atherosclerosis 18 27214395
2015 Fratricide activity of MafB protein of N. meningitidis strain B16B6. BMC microbiology 18 26242409
2019 Transcription factor MafB is a marker of tumor-associated macrophages in both mouse and humans. Biochemical and biophysical research communications 17 31679694
2017 Transcription factor MafB may play an important role in secondary hyperparathyroidism. Kidney international 17 28964572
2017 MAFB enhances oncogenic Notch signaling in T cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Science signaling 17 29138297
2023 MafB regulates NLRP3 inflammasome activation by sustaining p62 expression in macrophages. Communications biology 16 37845329
2019 Loss of MafA and MafB expression promotes islet inflammation. Scientific reports 16 31235823
2009 OH-2, a hyperdiploid myeloma cell line without an IGH translocation, has a complex translocation juxtaposing MYC near MAFB and the IGK locus. Leukemia research 16 19395026
2021 Periodontitis Risk Variants at SIGLEC5 Impair ERG and MAFB Binding. Journal of dental research 15 34852650
2017 Identification of a MAFB mutation in a patient with multicentric carpotarsal osteolysis. Swiss medical weekly 15 29120020
2013 Reduced number and morphofunctional change of alveolar macrophages in MafB gene-targeted mice. PloS one 15 24040127
2004 Expression of c-maf and mafB genes in the skin during rat embryonic development. Acta histochemica 15 15032330
2019 The Transcription Factor MafB Regulates the Susceptibility of Bactrocera dorsalis to Abamectin via GSTz2. Frontiers in physiology 14 31481900