BOLL

gene
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Also known as BOULE

Summary

BOLL (boule RNA binding protein, HGNC:14273) is a protein-coding gene on chromosome 2q33.1, encoding Protein boule-like (Q8N9W6). Probable RNA-binding protein, which may be required during spermatogenesis.

This gene belongs to the DAZ gene family required for germ cell development. It encodes an RNA-binding protein which is more similar to Drosophila Boule than to human proteins encoded by genes DAZ (deleted in azoospermia) or DAZL (deleted in azoospermia-like). Loss of this gene function results in the absence of sperm in semen (azoospermia). Histological studies demonstrated that the primary defect is at the meiotic G2/M transition. Two alternatively spliced transcript variants encoding distinct isoforms have been found for this gene.

Source: NCBI Gene 66037 — RefSeq curated summary.

At a glance

  • GWAS associations: 21
  • Clinical variants (ClinVar): 46 total
  • MANE Select transcript: NM_033030

Identifiers

Gene identifiers

FieldValue
HGNC IDHGNC:14273
Approved symbolBOLL
Nameboule RNA binding protein
Location2q33.1
Locus typegene with protein product
StatusApproved
AliasesBOULE
Ensembl geneENSG00000152430
Ensembl biotypeprotein_coding
OMIM606165
Entrez66037

Gene structure

Transcript identifiers

Ensembl transcripts: 8 — 5 protein_coding, 2 protein_coding_CDS_not_defined, 1 nonsense_mediated_decay

ENST00000321801, ENST00000392296, ENST00000430004, ENST00000433157, ENST00000434976, ENST00000468827, ENST00000486206, ENST00000696103

RefSeq mRNA: 5 — MANE Select: NM_033030 NM_001284358, NM_001284361, NM_001284362, NM_033030, NM_197970

CCDS: CCDS2324, CCDS2325

Canonical transcript exons

ENST00000392296 — 11 exons

ExonStartEnd
ENSE00002283182197777059197777113
ENSE00002316144197775665197775740
ENSE00003473014197756428197756556
ENSE00003505764197781722197781865
ENSE00003514990197771855197771982
ENSE00003539782197778975197779066
ENSE00003547716197766532197766603
ENSE00003578526197743061197743159
ENSE00003666160197757353197757400
ENSE00003902208197726890197728578
ENSE00003966008197785056197785319

Expression profiles

Bgee: expression breadth broad, 75 present calls, max score 94.82.

FANTOM5 (CAGE): breadth tissue_specific, TPM avg 0.2853 / max 284.6346, expressed in 4 samples.

FANTOM5 promoters (7 alternative TSS)

Promoter IDTPM avgSamples expressed
331000.08643
331020.06263
330980.05253
330970.05053
330990.02333
331010.00714
331030.00292

Top tissues by expression

201 total, by Bgee expression score (0-100, higher = more expressed):

TissueAnatomy IDExpression scoreQuality
left testisUBERON:000453394.82gold quality
adult organismUBERON:000702394.70gold quality
right testisUBERON:000453494.57gold quality
spermCL:000001993.91gold quality
testisUBERON:000047392.00gold quality
buccal mucosa cellCL:000233690.15gold quality
male germ line stem cell (sensu Vertebrata) in testisCL:0000089 ∩ UBERON:000047381.34gold quality
hindlimb stylopod muscleUBERON:000425278.14gold quality
tibialis anteriorUBERON:000138577.96silver quality
primordial germ cell in gonadCL:0000670 ∩ UBERON:000099176.99gold quality
gastrocnemiusUBERON:000138871.22gold quality
muscle of legUBERON:000138371.00gold quality
ileal mucosaUBERON:000033167.76silver quality
skeletal muscle tissue of biceps brachiiUBERON:000450267.18gold quality
skeletal muscle tissueUBERON:000113466.45gold quality
deltoidUBERON:000147665.25silver quality
muscle tissueUBERON:000238562.21gold quality
upper leg skinUBERON:000426258.71gold quality
pancreatic ductal cellCL:000207958.70silver quality
vastus lateralisUBERON:000137958.27gold quality
epithelial cell of pancreasCL:000008354.49gold quality
cardiac muscle of right atriumUBERON:000337954.34gold quality
left ventricle myocardiumUBERON:000656654.23gold quality
kidney epitheliumUBERON:000481953.93gold quality
upper arm skinUBERON:000426353.52gold quality
cerebellar vermisUBERON:000472051.65gold quality
myocardiumUBERON:000234950.25gold quality
nasal cavity epitheliumUBERON:000538447.03gold quality
jejunumUBERON:000211544.69gold quality
thymusUBERON:000237044.64gold quality

Single-cell (SCXA)

Detected in 1 experiment(s), a significant marker in 0.

ExperimentMarker?Max mean expression
E-ANND-3no3.71

Regulation

Is transcription factor: no

miRNA regulators (miRDB)

114 targeting BOLL, top 30 by miRDB confidence (max_score; target_count = how many genes the miRNA targets in total — lower means more specific):

miRNAMax scoreAvg scoremiRNA target_count
HSA-MIR-3646100.0073.565283
HSA-MIR-4262100.0073.263931
HSA-MIR-5692A100.0074.406850
HSA-MIR-3163100.0077.238605
HSA-MIR-4795-3P100.0074.624024
HSA-MIR-4476100.0068.182030
HSA-MIR-6876-5P100.0067.682126
HSA-MIR-181A-5P99.9972.962995
HSA-MIR-181B-5P99.9972.972996
HSA-MIR-181C-5P99.9972.952996
HSA-MIR-181D-5P99.9973.042997
HSA-MIR-428299.9975.366408
HSA-MIR-548C-3P99.9974.017587
HSA-MIR-477599.9875.006394
HSA-MIR-548N99.9871.944170
HSA-MIR-548P99.9872.253784
HSA-MIR-302C-5P99.9772.563642
HSA-MIR-3688-3P99.9772.022834
HSA-MIR-590-3P99.9674.346478
HSA-MIR-570-3P99.9672.414910
HSA-MIR-448799.9664.581252
HSA-MIR-6825-5P99.9669.813431
HSA-MIR-551B-5P99.9671.283493
HSA-MIR-1-3P99.9372.351914
HSA-MIR-20699.9372.501893
HSA-MIR-314399.9371.963104
HSA-MIR-10527-5P99.9172.283754
HSA-MIR-464899.9167.00710
HSA-MIR-61399.9171.501710
HSA-MIR-367199.9073.043897

Literature-anchored findings (GeneRIF, showing 16)

  • BOULE may encode a key conserved switch that regulates progression of germ cells through meiosis in men. (PMID:12499397)
  • Role in spermatogenesis. Decreased DAZ proteins in spermatogenic failure may be due to germ cell loss. Transcription of BOULE, DAZL, and DAZ not altered in degrees of spermatogenic failure. No increase of DAZL or BOULE found in DAZ deletion. (PMID:15066460)
  • Major group of infertile men with meiotic arrest lack BOULE protein and its putative target, CDC25A expression. Spermatogenic failure may arise from factor(s) upstream of BOULE possibly involved in regulating transcription and/or translation of BOULE. (PMID:15070965)
  • BOULE coding sequence mutations are not an important factor in the aetiology of azoospermia. (PMID:15379971)
  • mutations in BOULE can be eliminated as a major cause of impaired spermatogenesis. (PMID:15705409)
  • Among the three BOULE isoforms, B2 might have the major role for meiotic completion. (PMID:17114206)
  • expression of spermatogenic phenotypes of partial AZFc deletions is independent of the variations in DAZL and BOULE in the Han population (PMID:19342699)
  • CDC25A is subject to translational control by BOLL, which is an evolutionarily conserved mechanism. (PMID:19417033)
  • human DAZL (deleted in azoospermia-like) functions in primordial germ-cell formation, whereas closely related genes DAZ and BOULE (also called BOLL) promote later stages of meiosis and development of haploid gametes (PMID:19865085)
  • Assessing the expression of both CDY1 and BOULE by qualitative RT-PCR is a sensitive and feasible test for predicting the presence of sperm cells in testicular tissue biopsies. (PMID:21474125)
  • demonstrate that Boll is also transiently expressed during oogenesis in the fetal mouse ovary, but is simultaneously co-expressed within the same germ cells as Dazl (PMID:24086306)
  • Our study demonstrated an oncogenic role of BOLL in CRC despite tumor-specific promoter hypermethylation. (PMID:25605553)
  • hypermethylation of DAZL and BOULE promoters in human sperm is associated with human infertility (PMID:27358391)
  • Four sterility-related genes, including BOLL, DDX4, HORMAD1, and MAEL, were found to have increased methylation at CpGs of the promoter regions and decreased mRNA expressions in nonobstructive azoospermia and hypospermatogenesis (HS) testis and are believed to be associated with HS. (PMID:28342926)
  • Direct reprogramming of human Sertoli cells into male germline stem cells with the self-renewal and differentiation potentials via overexpressing DAZL/DAZ2/BOULE genes. (PMID:34653405)
  • Novel Mutations Reduce Expression of Meiotic Regulators SYCE1 and BOLL in Testis of Azoospermic Men from West Bengal, India. (PMID:37957469)

Cross-species orthologs

4 orthologs

OrganismSymbolGene ID
mus_musculusBollENSMUSG00000025977
rattus_norvegicusBollENSRNOG00000054379
drosophila_melanogasterbolFBGN0011206
caenorhabditis_elegansWBGENE00000935

Paralogs (5): DAZL (ENSG00000092345), DAZ3 (ENSG00000187191), DAZ1 (ENSG00000188120), DAZ4 (ENSG00000205916), DAZ2 (ENSG00000205944)

Protein

Protein identifiers

Protein boule-likeQ8N9W6 (reviewed: Q8N9W6)

All UniProt accessions (4): Q8N9W6, A0A8Q3WL03, F2Z2G3, F8WD91

UniProt curated annotations — full annotation on UniProt →

Function. Probable RNA-binding protein, which may be required during spermatogenesis. May act by binding to the 3’-UTR of mRNAs and regulating their translation.

Subunit / interactions. Interacts with DAZ1 and DAZL.

Subcellular location. Cytoplasm.

Tissue specificity. Testis specific. Not expressed in early embryos, primordial germ cells and spermatogonial cells. First expressed in the cytoplasm of spermatocytes and then persists through meiosis.

Similarity. Belongs to the RRM DAZ family.

Isoforms (5)

UniProt IDNamesCanonical?
Q8N9W6-11, BOULE2yes
Q8N9W6-22
Q8N9W6-33, BOULE1
Q8N9W6-44, BOULE3
Q8N9W6-55

RefSeq proteins (5): NP_001271287, NP_001271290, NP_001271291, NP_149019, NP_932074 (=MANE)

Domains & families (InterPro)

IDNameType
IPR000504RRM_domDomain
IPR012677Nucleotide-bd_a/b_plait_sfHomologous_superfamily
IPR035979RBD_domain_sfHomologous_superfamily
IPR043628DAZ_domDomain

Pfam: PF00076

UniProt features (11 total): splice variant 6, domain 2, chain 1, sequence conflict 1, region of interest 1

Structure

Experimental structures (PDB)

0 structures.

Predicted structure (AlphaFold)

ModelpLDDTFraction very-high
AF-Q8N9W6-F164.180.25

Function

Pathways and Gene Ontology

Reactome pathways

0 pathways

MSigDB gene sets: 118 (showing top): GOBP_REGULATION_OF_MRNA_CATABOLIC_PROCESS, ATACCTC_MIR202, GOBP_3_UTR_MEDIATED_MRNA_STABILIZATION, GOBP_MACROMOLECULE_CATABOLIC_PROCESS, GOBP_TRANSLATIONAL_INITIATION, GOBP_MALE_GAMETE_GENERATION, GOBP_TRANSLATION, GOBP_POSITIVE_REGULATION_OF_TRANSLATIONAL_INITIATION, GOBP_POST_TRANSCRIPTIONAL_REGULATION_OF_GENE_EXPRESSION, GOMF_TRANSLATION_REGULATOR_ACTIVITY, GOBP_REGULATION_OF_CATABOLIC_PROCESS, BROWN_MYELOID_CELL_DEVELOPMENT_UP, GOBP_DEVELOPMENTAL_PROCESS_INVOLVED_IN_REPRODUCTION, WEBER_METHYLATED_HCP_IN_SPERM_UP, WEBER_METHYLATED_HCP_IN_FIBROBLAST_DN

GO Biological Process (6): spermatogenesis (GO:0007283), cell differentiation (GO:0030154), positive regulation of translational initiation (GO:0045948), meiotic cell cycle (GO:0051321), 3’-UTR-mediated mRNA stabilization (GO:0070935), regulation of translation (GO:0006417)

GO Molecular Function (6): mRNA 3’-UTR binding (GO:0003730), translation activator activity (GO:0008494), identical protein binding (GO:0042802), nucleic acid binding (GO:0003676), RNA binding (GO:0003723), protein binding (GO:0005515)

GO Cellular Component (1): cytoplasm (GO:0005737)

GO top-level categories

Rollup of top GO terms by namespace:

CategoryTerms
positive regulation of translation2
binding2
developmental process involved in reproduction1
male gamete generation1
cellular developmental process1
translational initiation1
regulation of translational initiation1
cell cycle1
sexual reproduction1
reproductive process1
meiotic nuclear division1
mRNA stabilization1
translation1
post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression1
regulation of protein metabolic process1
mRNA binding1
translation regulator activity1
protein binding1
nucleic acid binding1
intracellular anatomical structure1
cellular anatomical structure1

Protein interactions and networks

STRING

1798 interactions, top by confidence (×1000):

Protein AProtein BPartner UniProtScore
BOLLPUM2Q8TB72862
BOLLDAZAP2Q15038835
BOLLCDC25AP30304773
BOLLPABPC1P11940759
BOLLDDX4Q9NQI0759
BOLLSYCP3Q8IZU3732
BOLLACRP10323652
BOLLCDC25BP30305585
BOLLTEKT1Q969V4574
BOLLSTRA8Q7Z7C7542
BOLLNANOS3P60323520
BOLLCPEB1Q9BZB8500
BOLLGDF9O60383492
BOLLCDC25CP30307487
BOLLPRM2P04554480

IntAct

40 interactions, top by confidence:

ABTypeScore
ZNF385CBOLLpsi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.680
BOLLZNF385Cpsi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.680
RBFOX2BOLLpsi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.670
BOLLHNRNPLLpsi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.670
HNRNPLLBOLLpsi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.670
TFGBOLLpsi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.610
BOLLTFGpsi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.610
NPBWR2BOLLpsi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.560
C1orf94BOLLpsi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.560
BOLLpsi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.560
BOLLRBPMSpsi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.560
BOLLNPBWR2psi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.560
BOLLC1orf94psi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.560
BOLLpsi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.560
RBPMSBOLLpsi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.560
DAZ1BOLLpsi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.550

BioGRID (50): BOLL (Two-hybrid), BOLL (Two-hybrid), BOLL (Two-hybrid), BOLL (Two-hybrid), BOLL (Two-hybrid), C1orf94 (Two-hybrid), HNRNPLL (Two-hybrid), ZNF385C (Two-hybrid), UBA5 (Affinity Capture-MS), CDC20B (Affinity Capture-MS), ACY1 (Affinity Capture-MS), CDC20B (Affinity Capture-MS), UBA5 (Affinity Capture-MS), ACY1 (Affinity Capture-MS), BOLL (Two-hybrid)

ESM2 similar proteins: A0A8M1NHK4, A0AV96, A4F5G6, A4IHD9, A6QPR6, B2RWS6, B3M3R5, B3NGA1, B4HUE4, B4IX08, B4KX02, B4LFQ9, B4MM23, B4PIS2, B4QRJ0, G0SB31, O43251, P11420, Q02926, Q09472, Q14671, Q21955, Q24207, Q29A33, Q2VB19, Q5R5P4, Q5R5X3, Q5R8K4, Q66H68, Q66JB7, Q7PMS9, Q7TSH6, Q7ZT82, Q7ZXV8, Q80U58, Q80U78, Q8BIF2, Q8MSV2, Q8N9W6, Q8R205

Diamond homologs: A0A0D1C8Z4, A1A5R1, A1D4K4, A2A5N3, A2Q848, A3LXL0, A4F5G6, A5DW14, A6NFN3, A6QPR6, F1QB54, F4HT49, O04319, O43251, P04147, P0CB38, P11940, P15771, P19682, P19683, P20965, P23246, P28644, P29341, P42731, P49313, P60824, P60825, P60826, P61286, P62995, P62996, P62997, P82277, Q04836, Q08935, Q08937, Q09511, Q0CR95, Q0VD23

SIGNOR signaling

0 interactions.

Disease & clinical

Clinical variants and AI predictions

ClinVar

46 variants total. Per-class counts are floors (≥ shown; pagination cap):

ClassificationCount (floor)
Pathogenic0
Likely pathogenic0
Uncertain significance38
Likely benign0
Benign0

Top pathogenic / likely-pathogenic (0)

SpliceAI

2056 predictions. Top by Δscore:

VariantEffectΔscore
2:197743055:TCTTA:Tdonor_loss1.0000
2:197743056:CTTAC:Cdonor_loss1.0000
2:197743057:TTA:Tdonor_loss1.0000
2:197743058:TA:Tdonor_loss1.0000
2:197743059:A:ACdonor_gain1.0000
2:197743059:ACTTT:Adonor_loss1.0000
2:197743060:C:Adonor_loss1.0000
2:197743060:C:CAdonor_gain1.0000
2:197743060:CTTTA:Cdonor_gain1.0000
2:197743155:TAAGG:Tacceptor_gain1.0000
2:197743158:GG:Gacceptor_gain1.0000
2:197743158:GGCTA:Gacceptor_loss1.0000
2:197743159:GCTAT:Gacceptor_loss1.0000
2:197743160:C:CCacceptor_gain1.0000
2:197743163:T:Cacceptor_gain1.0000
2:197743163:T:TCacceptor_gain1.0000
2:197756423:CATA:Cdonor_loss1.0000
2:197756424:ATAC:Adonor_loss1.0000
2:197756427:C:CTdonor_loss1.0000
2:197756557:C:CCacceptor_gain1.0000
2:197759010:C:CTacceptor_gain1.0000
2:197771853:A:ACdonor_gain1.0000
2:197771853:ACAGG:Adonor_gain1.0000
2:197771854:C:CCdonor_gain1.0000
2:197771854:CAGG:Cdonor_gain1.0000
2:197771854:CAGGC:Cdonor_gain1.0000
2:197775663:A:ACdonor_gain1.0000
2:197775664:C:CCdonor_gain1.0000
2:197775664:CGA:Cdonor_gain1.0000
2:197775676:A:ACdonor_gain1.0000

AlphaMissense

1822 scored. Top likely-pathogenic:

VariantProtein changeam_pathogenicity
2:197775694:G:TA108E1.000
2:197775709:A:GL103P1.000
2:197777096:A:GF80S1.000
2:197777102:A:TV78D1.000
2:197777104:G:CF77L1.000
2:197777104:G:TF77L1.000
2:197777105:A:CF77C1.000
2:197777105:A:GF77S1.000
2:197777106:A:CF77V1.000
2:197777106:A:GF77L1.000
2:197777108:C:TG76D1.000
2:197777112:A:CY75D1.000
2:197777112:A:GY75H1.000
2:197778975:C:TG74E1.000
2:197778977:T:AK73N1.000
2:197778977:T:GK73N1.000
2:197778978:T:AK73I1.000
2:197778979:T:CK73E1.000
2:197779026:C:TG57E1.000
2:197779050:A:GL49S1.000
2:197781735:C:TG39E1.000
2:197781738:C:TG38E1.000
2:197781741:A:TV37E1.000
2:197781743:A:CF36L1.000
2:197781743:A:TF36L1.000
2:197781744:A:CF36C1.000
2:197781744:A:GF36S1.000
2:197781745:A:CF36V1.000
2:197781745:A:GF36L1.000
2:197781750:C:GR34P1.000

dbSNP variants (sampled 300 via entrez): RS1000015602 (2:197762966 G>A), RS1000030694 (2:197741056 A>G), RS1000122600 (2:197777436 T>A), RS1000161746 (2:197749012 C>T), RS1000167671 (2:197785405 G>A,C), RS1000171752 (2:197773933 A>C,T), RS1000264737 (2:197770929 A>G), RS1000286471 (2:197737800 C>G), RS1000305510 (2:197741046 C>T), RS1000311452 (2:197735144 G>A), RS1000329918 (2:197781321 C>T), RS1000418884 (2:197778756 T>C), RS1000432474 (2:197773586 G>A), RS1000485862 (2:197755929 C>G,T), RS1000585474 (2:197729104 G>A,T)

Disease associations

OMIM: gene MIM:606165 | disease phenotypes:

GenCC curated gene-disease

Mondo (0):

Orphanet (0):

HPO phenotypes

0 total (0 of 0 shown, HPO-id order):

GWAS associations

21 associations (top):

StudyTraitp-value
GCST000262_1Intracranial aneurysm4.000000e-08
GCST002539_41Schizophrenia2.000000e-11
GCST004132_35Crohn’s disease7.000000e-08
GCST004521_180Autism spectrum disorder or schizophrenia3.000000e-11
GCST004521_275Autism spectrum disorder or schizophrenia7.000000e-09
GCST005588_16Idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy9.000000e-06
GCST006803_21Schizophrenia4.000000e-13
GCST007293_117Body fat distribution (arm fat ratio)1.000000e-06
GCST007293_18Body fat distribution (arm fat ratio)2.000000e-07
GCST007293_44Body fat distribution (arm fat ratio)8.000000e-11
GCST007294_108Body fat distribution (trunk fat ratio)4.000000e-06
GCST007294_27Body fat distribution (trunk fat ratio)3.000000e-09
GCST007565_194Morning person1.000000e-27
GCST009720_92Asthma3.000000e-08
GCST010698_25Subcortical volume (min-P)2.000000e-08
GCST010699_24Brain morphology (min-P)1.000000e-09
GCST010700_25Cortical thickness (MOSTest)2.000000e-10
GCST010701_25Cortical surface area (MOSTest)2.000000e-37
GCST010702_65Subcortical volume (MOSTest)1.000000e-11
GCST010703_197Brain morphology (MOSTest)1.000000e-11
GCST010730_2Rheumatoid arthritis2.000000e-08

EFO canonical traits (5, from GWAS)

EFO IDTrait name
EFO:0009094idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy
EFO:0004341body fat distribution
EFO:0008328chronotype measurement
EFO:0004346neuroimaging measurement
EFO:0004840cortical thickness

Drugs & pharmacology

Drug and pharmacology data

Is drug target: no

PharmGKB: 1 entry (VIP=true, CPIC=false)

CTD chemical–gene interactions

10 total (human), top 10 by PubMed support.

ChemicalActions (top 5)PubMed papers
bisphenol Adecreases expression1
CGP 52608affects binding, increases reaction1
bisphenol Saffects cotreatment, decreases methylation1
Irinotecanaffects cotreatment, increases response to substance1
Fulvestrantaffects cotreatment, decreases methylation1
Amiodaroneincreases expression1
Benzo(a)pyrenedecreases methylation, increases methylation1
Leucovorinincreases response to substance, affects cotreatment1
Fluorouracilaffects cotreatment, increases response to substance1
Valproic Acidincreases methylation1

Clinical trials (associated diseases)

0 trials via MONDO — disease-level, not drug-specific.

  • Disease cohort memberships (association, not causation — diseases whose associated-gene cohort lists this gene; a subset are also under Associated diseases): brain aneurysm, rheumatoid arthritis