This gene encodes a flavin adenine dinucleotide-binding protein that is a key component of the circadian core oscillator complex, which regulates the circadian clock. This gene is upregulated by CLOCK/ARNTL heterodimers but then represses this upregulation in a feedback loop using PER/CRY heterodimers to interact with CLOCK/ARNTL. Polymorphisms in this gene have been associated with altered sleep patterns. The encoded protein is widely conserved across plants and animals. Loss of the related gene in mouse results in a shortened circadian cycle in complete darkness. [provided by RefSeq, Jan 2014],
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Function:
cofactor:Binds 1 5,10-methenyltetrahydrofolate non-covalently per subunit.,cofactor:Binds 1 FAD per subunit.,Function:Blue light-dependent regulator of the circadian feedback loop. Inhibits CLOCK|NPAS2-ARNTL E box-mediated transcription. Acts, in conjunction with CRY2, in maintaining period length and circadian rhythmicity. Has no photolyase activity. Capable of translocating circadian clock core proteins such as PER proteins to the nucleus. May inhibit CLOCK|NPAS2-ARNTL transcriptional activity through stabilizing the unphosphorylated form of ARNTL.,induction:Expression is regulated by light and circadian rhythms. Peak expression in the suprachiasma nucleus (SCN) and eye at the day/night transition (CT12). Levels decrease with ARNTL-CLOCK inhibition as part of the autoregulatory feedback loop.,online information:Cryptochrome entry,PTM:Phosphorylation on Ser-247 by MAPK is important for the inhibition of CLOCK-ARNTL-mediated transcriptional activity. Phosphorylation by CSNK1E requires interaction with PER1 or PER2.,similarity:Belongs to the DNA photolyase class-1 family.,similarity:Contains 1 DNA photolyase domain.,subcellular location:Translocated to the nucleus through interaction with other Clock proteins such as PER2 or ARNTL.,subunit:Component of the circadian core oscillator, which includes the CRY proteins, CLOCK or NPAS2, ARNTL or ARNTL2, CSNK1D and/or CSNK1E, TIMELESS, and the PER proteins. Interacts directly with TIMELESS and the PER proteins. Interacts directly with PER1 and PER2 C-terminal domains. Interaction with PER2 inhibits its ubiquitination and vice versa. Binds MAPK.,
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Cellular Localization:
Cytoplasm. Nucleus . Translocated to the nucleus through interaction with other clock proteins such as PER2 or ARNTL/BMAL1. .