HOXB8

gene
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Summary

HOXB8 (homeobox B8, HGNC:5119) is a protein-coding gene on chromosome 17q21.32, encoding Homeobox protein Hox-B8 (P17481). Sequence-specific transcription factor which is part of a developmental regulatory system that provides cells with specific positional identities on the anterior-posterior axis.

This gene is a member of the Antp homeobox family and encodes a nuclear protein with a homeobox DNA-binding domain. It is included in a cluster of homeobox B genes located on chromosome 17. The encoded protein functions as a sequence-specific transcription factor that is involved in development. Increased expression of this gene is associated with colorectal cancer. Mice that have had the murine ortholog of this gene knocked out exhibit an excessive pathologic grooming behavior. This behavior is similar to the behavior of humans suffering from the obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorder trichotillomania.

Source: NCBI Gene 3218 — RefSeq curated summary.

At a glance

  • Clinical variants (ClinVar): 27 total
  • MANE Select transcript: NM_024016

Identifiers

Gene identifiers

FieldValue
HGNC IDHGNC:5119
Approved symbolHOXB8
Namehomeobox B8
Location17q21.32
Locus typegene with protein product
StatusApproved
Ensembl geneENSG00000120068
Ensembl biotypeprotein_coding
OMIM142963
Entrez3218

Gene structure

Transcript identifiers

Ensembl transcripts: 5 — 5 protein_coding

ENST00000239144, ENST00000498634, ENST00000576562, ENST00000884865, ENST00000884866

RefSeq mRNA: 1 — MANE Select: NM_024016 NM_024016

CCDS: CCDS11533

Canonical transcript exons

ENST00000239144 — 2 exons

ExonStartEnd
ENSE000008126424861428148615292
ENSE000013137884861234648613509

Expression profiles

Bgee: expression breadth ubiquitous, 121 present calls, max score 88.56.

FANTOM5 (CAGE): breadth broad, TPM avg 3.5066 / max 195.4430, expressed in 650 samples.

FANTOM5 promoters (11 alternative TSS)

Promoter IDTPM avgSamples expressed
1667171.1269408
1667240.6494152
1667270.3965135
1667190.3738239
1667230.3306145
1667220.186565
1667260.183774
1667210.100328
1667200.067226
1667180.047925

Top tissues by expression

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

TissueAnatomy IDExpression scoreQuality
corpus epididymisUBERON:000435988.56gold quality
metanephros cortexUBERON:001053388.14gold quality
seminal vesicleUBERON:000099888.02gold quality
kidney epitheliumUBERON:000481985.48gold quality
C1 segment of cervical spinal cordUBERON:000646984.44gold quality
spinal cordUBERON:000224083.23gold quality
primordial germ cell in gonadCL:0000670 ∩ UBERON:000099182.83gold quality
adult mammalian kidneyUBERON:000008280.20gold quality
ileal mucosaUBERON:000033178.10gold quality
mucosa of transverse colonUBERON:000499177.11gold quality
metanephrosUBERON:000008175.81gold quality
right adrenal glandUBERON:000123375.48gold quality
caput epididymisUBERON:000435875.07gold quality
small intestine Peyer’s patchUBERON:000345474.35gold quality
left adrenal gland cortexUBERON:003582573.98gold quality
oviduct epitheliumUBERON:000480473.63gold quality
left adrenal glandUBERON:000123473.59gold quality
omental fat padUBERON:001041473.33gold quality
cortex of kidneyUBERON:000122573.31gold quality
peritoneumUBERON:000235873.24gold quality
right adrenal gland cortexUBERON:003582773.16gold quality
kidneyUBERON:000211372.29gold quality
adipose tissue of abdominal regionUBERON:000780872.04gold quality
transverse colonUBERON:000115771.50gold quality
adrenal cortexUBERON:000123571.48gold quality
colonic epitheliumUBERON:000039770.93gold quality
small intestineUBERON:000210869.11gold quality
adrenal glandUBERON:000236969.11gold quality
endometriumUBERON:000129567.68gold quality
cauda epididymisUBERON:000436067.56silver quality

Single-cell (SCXA)

Detected in 2 experiment(s), a significant marker in 1.

ExperimentMarker?Max mean expression
E-HCAD-56yes1029.31
E-ANND-3no2.30

Regulation

Is transcription factor: yes

Downstream targets (CollecTRI)

4 targets.

TargetRegulation
ACTA2Repression
EIF3K
MYLKRepression
TAGLNRepression

JASPAR motifs

MotifNameFamily
MA1502.1HOXB8HOX
MA1502.2HOXB8HOX

JASPAR matrix evidence (PMIDs): PMID:18585359

Upstream regulators (CollecTRI, top): ARID4B, HOXC10, HOXC9

miRNA regulators (miRDB)

67 targeting HOXB8, 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-4425100.0067.591049
HSA-MIR-30A-5P100.0076.313233
HSA-MIR-30B-5P100.0076.293248
HSA-MIR-30C-5P100.0076.293248
HSA-MIR-30D-5P100.0076.323233
HSA-MIR-30E-5P100.0076.323242
HSA-MIR-6758-5P100.0066.211470
HSA-MIR-6856-5P100.0065.471298
HSA-MIR-4747-5P100.0067.902681
HSA-MIR-5196-5P100.0067.982761
HSA-MIR-520D-5P99.9873.344883
HSA-MIR-524-5P99.9873.434882
HSA-MIR-499A-5P99.9870.791323
HSA-MIR-27A-3P99.9872.132955
HSA-MIR-27B-3P99.9872.132955
HSA-MIR-998599.9872.112939
HSA-MIR-3065-5P99.9771.563281
HSA-MIR-314899.9775.066478
HSA-MIR-651-3P99.9473.485177
HSA-MIR-6835-3P99.9370.492904
HSA-MIR-589-3P99.9169.622088
HSA-MIR-3529-3P99.9073.553045
HSA-MIR-6780A-5P99.8866.692776
HSA-MIR-4728-5P99.8569.394718
HSA-MIR-6715A-3P99.8368.051473
HSA-MIR-6785-5P99.8268.684428
HSA-MIR-6756-5P99.8267.972466
HSA-MIR-6515-3P99.8268.191933
HSA-MIR-34B-5P99.7867.561175
HSA-MIR-449C-5P99.7867.631168

Literature-anchored findings (GeneRIF, showing 14)

  • HOXB5 and HOXB8 are frequently expressed in ovarian serous carcinoma, with anatomic site-related differences for cytoplasmic staining. HOXB8 expression is associated with shorter survival in metastatic serous carcinoma. (PMID:23438671)
  • HOXB8 and KLK11 may be classified as valuable biomarkers, as they can predict the effects of FOLFOX4 chemotherapy in primary advanced colorectal cancer patients (PMID:23647300)
  • Results show that FMRP regulates miR196a-mediated repression of HOXB8 via interaction with the AGO2 MID domain. (PMID:24727796)
  • Knockdown of ZEB2 can inhibit HOXB8-induced migration and invasion capacity, as well as the epithelial-mesenchymal transformation in gastric cancer cells. The results showed that HOXB8 plays an important role in the development and metastasis of gastric carcinoma (PMID:27761656)
  • miR-32-5p significantly downregulated in cervical cancer (CCa) tissues and cells. Bioinformatics and Luciferase method screened HOXB8 as a downstream regulatory target of miR-32-5p. Besides, HOXB8 was incredibly highly expressed in CCa tissues and cells. Decreased expression of HOXB8 resulting from upregulation of miR-32-5p could weaken cell proliferation, clone formation, invasion and migration ability of HeLa cells. (PMID:30657550)
  • HOXB8 knockdown inhibited cell proliferation. The invasiveness of HCT116 cells was significantly reduced following HOXB8 depletion compared with that in the shRNA control group, whereby the rates were reduced by 67% in HOXB8 knockdown group. (PMID:30677006)
  • knockdown of HOXB8 could suppress tumorigenesis and metastasis in OS through regulation of the Wnt/beta-catenin signaling pathway (PMID:30954562)
  • Knockdown of HOXB8 abolished the effects of miR-128 inhibitor on ovarian cancer cell proliferation and paclitaxel sensitivity. Summarily, miR-128 displayed a tumour suppressor role in ovarian cancer via targeting HOXB8. (PMID:31271703)
  • Oncogenic HOXB8 is driven by MYC-regulated super-enhancer and potentiates colorectal cancer invasiveness via BACH1. (PMID:31591481)
  • Homeobox B8 Targets Sterile Alpha Motif Domain-Containing Protein 9 and Drives Glioma Progression. (PMID:31646435)
  • SNHG3/miR-2682-5p/HOXB8 promotes cell proliferation and migration in oral squamous cell carcinoma. (PMID:32989886)
  • LINC01116 boosts the progression of pituitary adenoma via regulating miR-744-5p/HOXB8 pathway. (PMID:34098015)
  • Pharmacological Inhibition of Core Regulatory Circuitry Liquid-liquid Phase Separation Suppresses Metastasis and Chemoresistance in Osteosarcoma. (PMID:34432948)
  • HOXB8 Counteracts MAPK/ERK Oncogenic Signaling in a Chicken Embryo Model of Neoplasia. (PMID:34445617)

Cross-species orthologs

4 orthologs

OrganismSymbolGene ID
danio_reriohoxb8bENSDARG00000054025
danio_reriohoxb8aENSDARG00000056027
mus_musculusHoxb8ENSMUSG00000056648
rattus_norvegicusHoxb8ENSRNOG00000007585

Paralogs (42): HOXA11 (ENSG00000005073), HOXC8 (ENSG00000037965), HOXA1 (ENSG00000105991), HOXA2 (ENSG00000105996), HOXA3 (ENSG00000105997), HOXA5 (ENSG00000106004), HOXA6 (ENSG00000106006), HOXA13 (ENSG00000106031), TLX1 (ENSG00000107807), HOXB6 (ENSG00000108511), TLX2 (ENSG00000115297), HOXB5 (ENSG00000120075), HOXB3 (ENSG00000120093), HOXB1 (ENSG00000120094), HOXA7 (ENSG00000122592), HOXC13 (ENSG00000123364), HOXC11 (ENSG00000123388), HOXC12 (ENSG00000123407), HOXD1 (ENSG00000128645), HOXD3 (ENSG00000128652), HOXD9 (ENSG00000128709), HOXD10 (ENSG00000128710), HOXD11 (ENSG00000128713), HOXD13 (ENSG00000128714), PDX1 (ENSG00000139515), HOXB13 (ENSG00000159184), TLX3 (ENSG00000164438), HOXD4 (ENSG00000170166), HOXD12 (ENSG00000170178), HOXB9 (ENSG00000170689), HOXC5 (ENSG00000172789), HOXB2 (ENSG00000173917), HOXD8 (ENSG00000175879), GSX2 (ENSG00000180613), HOXC9 (ENSG00000180806), HOXC10 (ENSG00000180818), HOXB4 (ENSG00000182742), HOXA4 (ENSG00000197576), HOXC6 (ENSG00000197757), HOXC4 (ENSG00000198353)

Protein

Protein identifiers

Homeobox protein Hox-B8P17481 (reviewed: P17481)

Alternative names: Homeobox protein Hox-2.4, Homeobox protein Hox-2D

All UniProt accessions (3): P17481, I3L383, I3L3R1

UniProt curated annotations — full annotation on UniProt →

Function. Sequence-specific transcription factor which is part of a developmental regulatory system that provides cells with specific positional identities on the anterior-posterior axis.

Subunit / interactions. Forms a DNA-binding heterodimer with transcription factor PBX1.

Subcellular location. Nucleus.

Similarity. Belongs to the Antp homeobox family.

RefSeq proteins (1): NP_076921* (*=MANE)

Domains & families (InterPro)

IDNameType
IPR000047HTH_motifConserved_site
IPR001356HDDomain
IPR001827Homeobox_Antennapedia_CSConserved_site
IPR009057Homeodomain-like_sfHomologous_superfamily
IPR017970Homeobox_CSConserved_site
IPR020479HD_metazoaDomain
IPR050948Antp_homeobox_TFFamily

Pfam: PF00046

UniProt features (4 total): chain 1, DNA-binding region 1, region of interest 1, short sequence motif 1

Structure

Experimental structures (PDB)

0 structures.

Predicted structure (AlphaFold)

ModelpLDDTFraction very-high
AF-P17481-F165.310.27

Function

Pathways and Gene Ontology

Reactome pathways

0 pathways

MSigDB gene sets: 199 (showing top): GOBP_MYELOID_CELL_DIFFERENTIATION, GOBP_SPINAL_CORD_DEVELOPMENT, GOBP_EMBRYO_DEVELOPMENT_ENDING_IN_BIRTH_OR_EGG_HATCHING, YAATNRNNNYNATT_UNKNOWN, BENPORATH_ES_WITH_H3K27ME3, HNF3ALPHA_Q6, GOBP_BEHAVIOR, GOBP_SKELETAL_SYSTEM_DEVELOPMENT, GOBP_EMBRYONIC_SKELETAL_SYSTEM_DEVELOPMENT, CMYB_01, GOBP_ADULT_BEHAVIOR, SP3_Q3, GOBP_EMBRYONIC_SKELETAL_SYSTEM_MORPHOGENESIS, GRAESSMANN_APOPTOSIS_BY_SERUM_DEPRIVATION_UP, GRAESSMANN_RESPONSE_TO_MC_AND_SERUM_DEPRIVATION_UP

GO Biological Process (11): regulation of transcription by RNA polymerase II (GO:0006357), grooming behavior (GO:0007625), adult locomotory behavior (GO:0008344), anterior/posterior pattern specification (GO:0009952), sensory perception of pain (GO:0019233), dorsal spinal cord development (GO:0021516), negative regulation of myeloid cell differentiation (GO:0045638), embryonic skeletal system morphogenesis (GO:0048704), negative regulation of transcription by RNA polymerase II (GO:0000122), regulation of DNA-templated transcription (GO:0006355), skeletal system morphogenesis (GO:0048705)

GO Molecular Function (7): RNA polymerase II transcription regulatory region sequence-specific DNA binding (GO:0000977), DNA-binding transcription factor activity, RNA polymerase II-specific (GO:0000981), DNA-binding transcription repressor activity, RNA polymerase II-specific (GO:0001227), sequence-specific double-stranded DNA binding (GO:1990837), DNA binding (GO:0003677), DNA-binding transcription factor activity (GO:0003700), sequence-specific DNA binding (GO:0043565)

GO Cellular Component (3): chromatin (GO:0000785), nucleus (GO:0005634), nucleoplasm (GO:0005654)

GO top-level categories

Rollup of top GO terms by namespace:

CategoryTerms
regulation of DNA-templated transcription2
transcription by RNA polymerase II2
regulation of transcription by RNA polymerase II2
transcription cis-regulatory region binding2
RNA polymerase II transcription regulatory region sequence-specific DNA binding2
cellular anatomical structure2
behavior1
locomotory behavior1
adult behavior1
regionalization1
sensory perception1
spinal cord development1
anatomical structure development1
myeloid cell differentiation1
negative regulation of cell differentiation1
regulation of myeloid cell differentiation1
embryonic organ morphogenesis1
skeletal system morphogenesis1
embryonic skeletal system development1
negative regulation of DNA-templated transcription1
DNA-templated transcription1
regulation of gene expression1
regulation of RNA biosynthetic process1
skeletal system development1
animal organ morphogenesis1
chromatin1
DNA-binding transcription factor activity1
negative regulation of transcription by RNA polymerase II1
DNA-binding transcription factor activity, RNA polymerase II-specific1
DNA-binding transcription repressor activity1
double-stranded DNA binding1
sequence-specific DNA binding1
nucleic acid binding1
transcription regulator activity1
DNA binding1
chromosome1
intracellular membrane-bounded organelle1
nuclear lumen1

Protein interactions and networks

STRING

1000 interactions, top by confidence (×1000):

Protein AProtein BPartner UniProtScore
HOXB8DLGAP3O95886801
HOXB8PBX1P40424780
HOXB8MEIS1O00470603
HOXB8IRX2Q9BZI1576
HOXB8SLITRK5O94991573
HOXB8MEIS2O14770552
HOXB8DICER1Q9UPY3533
HOXB8SHHQ15465516
HOXB8GATA4P43694442
HOXB8ISL1P20663435
HOXB8PRSS58Q8IYP2420
HOXB8BNC2Q6ZN30410
HOXB8HOXC9P31274389
HOXB8PAX1P15863387
HOXB8CDH7Q9ULB5386

IntAct

3 interactions, top by confidence:

ABTypeScore
FAM110DNDUFA2psi-mi:“MI:0914”(association)0.350
HOXB8IMPDH1psi-mi:“MI:0914”(association)0.350

BioGRID (18): PBX3 (Reconstituted Complex), PBX1 (Reconstituted Complex), BACH1 (Co-localization), BACH1 (Affinity Capture-Western), HOXB8 (Affinity Capture-Western), FBXO7 (Affinity Capture-MS), KCTD9 (Affinity Capture-MS), MMADHC (Affinity Capture-MS), ANKHD1-EIF4EBP3 (Affinity Capture-MS), TBC1D23 (Affinity Capture-MS), HOXB8 (Affinity Capture-MS), PSMF1 (Affinity Capture-MS), IMPDH1 (Affinity Capture-MS), GKN2 (Affinity Capture-MS), LONP1 (Affinity Capture-MS)

ESM2 similar proteins: A0A1W2PPK0, A0A1W2PPM1, A1YFT7, A2D5V0, A2T7D1, A7Y7W3, A9L937, B0VXK3, F1Q4R9, G3X9P6, G3X9U1, O43364, P09025, P09092, P09632, P17278, P17481, P24342, P28358, P28359, P31245, P31246, P31263, P31273, Q0VCS4, Q1ECY2, Q1KKS8, Q1KKT2, Q1KKV1, Q1KKV4, Q1KKZ4, Q1KKZ6, Q3LTE0, Q3UT54, Q4JM65, Q4KL20, Q5TM83, Q5TM84, Q68EH7, Q6JIY4

Diamond homologs: A1YFA5, A1YFD8, A1YGK7, A2D5K9, A2D5Y4, A2T7F3, B0W1V2, O42504, P02830, P02832, P02833, P04476, P09013, P09014, P09016, P09017, P09019, P09020, P09021, P09023, P09024, P09025, P09067, P09071, P09074, P09077, P09079, P09080, P09092, P09629, P09630, P09632, P09634, P09636, P09637, P10284, P10629, P14838, P14839, P14840

SIGNOR signaling

5 interactions.

AEffectBMechanism
HOXB8“up-regulates activity”PBX3binding
HOXB8“up-regulates activity”PBX1binding
HOXB8“down-regulates quantity by repression”MYLK“transcriptional regulation”
HOXB8“down-regulates quantity by repression”ACTA2“transcriptional regulation”
HOXB8“down-regulates quantity by repression”TAGLN“transcriptional regulation”

Disease & clinical

Clinical variants and AI predictions

ClinVar

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

ClassificationCount (floor)
Pathogenic0
Likely pathogenic0
Uncertain significance26
Likely benign0
Benign1

Top pathogenic / likely-pathogenic (0)

SpliceAI

245 predictions. Top by Δscore:

VariantEffectΔscore
17:48614276:CTCA:Cdonor_loss1.0000
17:48614277:TCAC:Tdonor_loss1.0000
17:48614278:CA:Cdonor_loss1.0000
17:48614279:A:AGdonor_loss1.0000
17:48614280:C:CAdonor_loss1.0000
17:48613507:CTG:Cacceptor_gain0.9900
17:48613510:C:CCacceptor_gain0.9900
17:48613516:A:ACacceptor_gain0.9900
17:48614279:A:ACdonor_gain0.9900
17:48614280:C:CCdonor_gain0.9900
17:48614280:CCTTG:Cdonor_gain0.9900
17:48613504:CGG:Cacceptor_gain0.9800
17:48613505:GGCTG:Gacceptor_gain0.9800
17:48613508:TG:Tacceptor_gain0.9800
17:48614275:GCTCA:Gdonor_loss0.9800
17:48613505:GGC:Gacceptor_loss0.9700
17:48613506:GC:Gacceptor_loss0.9700
17:48613507:C:Aacceptor_loss0.9700
17:48613508:T:Gacceptor_loss0.9700
17:48613503:GCGG:Gacceptor_gain0.9600
17:48613504:CGGC:Cacceptor_gain0.9600
17:48613506:GCTGC:Gacceptor_gain0.9600
17:48613507:CTGCT:Cacceptor_gain0.9600
17:48613516:A:Cacceptor_gain0.9600
17:48613502:GGCGG:Gacceptor_gain0.9500
17:48613506:GCTG:Gacceptor_loss0.9500
17:48613507:CTGC:Cacceptor_loss0.9500
17:48613509:GC:Gacceptor_loss0.9500
17:48613510:C:Aacceptor_loss0.9500
17:48613511:T:Cacceptor_loss0.9500

AlphaMissense

1581 scored. Top likely-pathogenic:

VariantProtein changeam_pathogenicity
17:48613325:T:AK203N1.000
17:48613325:T:GK203N1.000
17:48613326:T:AK203I1.000
17:48613327:T:CK203E1.000
17:48613328:T:AK202N1.000
17:48613328:T:GK202N1.000
17:48613329:T:AK202I1.000
17:48613330:T:CK202E1.000
17:48613333:A:GW201R1.000
17:48613333:A:TW201R1.000
17:48613334:C:AK200N1.000
17:48613334:C:GK200N1.000
17:48613335:T:AK200M1.000
17:48613336:T:CK200E1.000
17:48613337:C:AM199I1.000
17:48613337:C:GM199I1.000
17:48613337:C:TM199I1.000
17:48613338:A:CM199R1.000
17:48613338:A:GM199T1.000
17:48613338:A:TM199K1.000
17:48613340:C:AR198S1.000
17:48613340:C:GR198S1.000
17:48613341:C:AR198M1.000
17:48613341:C:GR198T1.000
17:48613342:T:AR198W1.000
17:48613342:T:CR198G1.000
17:48613344:C:AR197L1.000
17:48613344:C:GR197P1.000
17:48613345:G:AR197W1.000
17:48613345:G:CR197G1.000

dbSNP variants (sampled 300 via entrez): RS1000072656 (17:48612023 T>C), RS1001957463 (17:48612851 A>G), RS1002748353 (17:48613657 G>GA), RS1002823054 (17:48614866 AAAAGAAAAG>A), RS1003942953 (17:48612616 G>C), RS1004033774 (17:48615603 C>T), RS1005715081 (17:48614177 G>C,T), RS1006154204 (17:48617250 C>A,T), RS1006230167 (17:48615894 T>G), RS1006929076 (17:48613902 T>A), RS1007657344 (17:48616906 T>A), RS1008017618 (17:48614986 G>A,C), RS1008293966 (17:48614056 G>T), RS1008320816 (17:48613745 C>G,T), RS1009073900 (17:48615245 G>A,T)

Disease associations

OMIM: gene MIM:142963 | disease phenotypes:

GenCC curated gene-disease

Mondo (0):

Orphanet (0):

HPO phenotypes

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

GWAS associations

0 associations (top):

Drugs & pharmacology

Drug and pharmacology data

Is drug target: no

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

CTD chemical–gene interactions

20 total (human), top 20 by PubMed support.

ChemicalActions (top 5)PubMed papers
Benzo(a)pyreneaffects methylation, decreases methylation, increases expression2
Tretinoinincreases expression2
3,19-(2-bromobenzylidene)andrographolidedecreases response to substance, increases expression1
beta-lapachonedecreases expression1
arseniteincreases methylation1
ferrous chloridedecreases expression1
abrinedecreases expression1
(+)-JQ1 compoundincreases expression1
EPZ004777decreases expression1
4-(4-((5-(4,5-dimethyl-2-nitrophenyl)-2-furanyl)methylene)-4,5-dihydro-3-methyl-5-oxo-1H-pyrazol-1-yl)benzoic acidincreases expression1
Arbutindecreases expression1
Cytarabinedecreases expression1
Methotrexatedecreases expression1
Triclosanincreases expression1
Tunicamycindecreases expression1
Valproic Acidaffects expression1
Aflatoxin B1decreases methylation1
Asbestos, Crocidolitedecreases methylation1
Asbestos, Amositedecreases methylation1
Okadaic Acidincreases expression1

Clinical trials (associated diseases)

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

No linked Atlas pages yet — the cross-entity mesh grows as the corpus expands.