IFITM2
Description
The IFITM2 (interferon induced transmembrane protein 2) is a protein-coding gene located on chromosome 11.
Interferon-induced transmembrane protein 2 (IFITM2) is a protein encoded by the IFITM2 gene in humans. It belongs to the IFITM family, which is encoded by IFITM genes and induced by interferon as part of its signaling pathway. While IFITM proteins can be expressed broadly in tissues and cell lines in the absence of interferon stimulation, IFITM1, IFITM2, and IFITM3 are expressed in different tissues and cells in humans, while IFITM5 expression is limited to osteoblasts. IFITM proteins have been identified as antiviral restriction factors that block the early stages of viral replication.
IFITM2 is an interferon-induced antiviral protein that inhibits the entry of viruses into the host cell cytoplasm. It allows endocytosis but prevents subsequent viral fusion and release of viral contents into the cytosol. IFITM2 is active against a wide range of viruses, including influenza A virus, SARS coronaviruses (SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2), Marburg virus (MARV), Ebola virus (EBOV), Dengue virus (DNV), West Nile virus (WNV), human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1), hepatitis C virus (HCV), and vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV). It can inhibit viral entry mediated by influenza virus hemagglutinin protein, MARV and EBOV GP1,2, SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 S protein, and VSV G protein. IFITM2 also induces cell cycle arrest and mediates apoptosis through caspase activation in a p53-independent manner. In hepatocytes, IFITM proteins work together to restrict HCV infection by targeting the endocytosed HCV virion for lysosomal degradation. IFITM2 and IFITM3 complement IFITM1's anti-HCV activity by inhibiting the late stages of HCV entry, possibly by trapping the virion in the endosomal pathway and targeting it for degradation in the lysosome.
IFITM2 is also known as 1-8D, DSPA2c.
