ZP2

gene
On this page

Also known as ZPA

Summary

ZP2 (zona pellucida glycoprotein 2, HGNC:13188) is a protein-coding gene on chromosome 16p12.3-p12.2, encoding Zona pellucida sperm-binding protein 2 (Q05996). Component of the zona pellucida, an extracellular matrix surrounding oocytes which mediates sperm binding, induction of the acrosome reaction and prevents post-fertilization polyspermy.

The zona pellucida is an extracellular matrix that surrounds the oocyte and early embryo. It is composed of three glycoproteins with various functions during fertilization and preimplantation development. The glycosylated mature peptide is one of the structural components of the zona pellucida and functions in secondary binding and penetration of acrosome-reacted spermatozoa. Female mice lacking this gene do not form a stable zona matrix and are sterile. Alternative splicing results in multiple transcript variants.

Source: NCBI Gene 7783 — RefSeq curated summary.

At a glance

  • Gene–disease (curated): oocyte maturation defect 6 (Definitive, GenCC) — +2 more curated relationships
  • GWAS associations: 1
  • Clinical variants (ClinVar): 165 total — 6 pathogenic, 3 likely-pathogenic
  • Phenotypes (HPO): 3
  • MANE Select transcript: NM_001376232

Identifiers

Gene identifiers

FieldValue
HGNC IDHGNC:13188
Approved symbolZP2
Namezona pellucida glycoprotein 2
Location16p12.3-p12.2
Locus typegene with protein product
StatusApproved
AliasesZPA
Ensembl geneENSG00000103310
Ensembl biotypeprotein_coding
OMIM182888
Entrez7783

Gene structure

Transcript identifiers

Ensembl transcripts: 5 — 3 retained_intron, 2 protein_coding

ENST00000572752, ENST00000573114, ENST00000574002, ENST00000574091, ENST00000576162

RefSeq mRNA: 4 — MANE Select: NM_001376232 NM_001376231, NM_001376232, NM_001376233, NM_003460

CCDS: CCDS10596

Canonical transcript exons

ENST00000574091 — 19 exons

ExonStartEnd
ENSE000006765862119776621197849
ENSE000006765872119877921198862
ENSE000006765882119957021199666
ENSE000006765892119974321199878
ENSE000006765902120136921201558
ENSE000006765912120170621201830
ENSE000006765922120193221202023
ENSE000006765952120210421202291
ENSE000006765972120312521203251
ENSE000006765982120403021204211
ENSE000011411772121148621211574
ENSE000034816332120963121209725
ENSE000034990232120430821204404
ENSE000035116572120542021205584
ENSE000035353692121010921210192
ENSE000035604432120573121205775
ENSE000035999462121130721211395
ENSE000036081812120683821206990
ENSE000037331592119745021197622

Expression profiles

Bgee: expression breadth broad, 63 present calls, max score 91.43.

FANTOM5 (CAGE): breadth tissue_specific, TPM avg 0.0981 / max 53.8047, expressed in 12 samples.

FANTOM5 promoters (2 alternative TSS)

Promoter IDTPM avgSamples expressed
1567160.082911
1567150.01524

Top tissues by expression

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

TissueAnatomy IDExpression scoreQuality
cerebellar cortexUBERON:000212991.43gold quality
cerebellumUBERON:000203791.38gold quality
cerebellar hemisphereUBERON:000224591.23gold quality
right hemisphere of cerebellumUBERON:001489089.84gold quality
male germ line stem cell (sensu Vertebrata) in testisCL:0000089 ∩ UBERON:000047382.01gold quality
placentaUBERON:000198759.52gold quality
colonic epitheliumUBERON:000039748.96gold quality
gall bladderUBERON:000211046.70gold quality
mucosa of transverse colonUBERON:000499145.81gold quality
small intestine Peyer’s patchUBERON:000345444.57gold quality
small intestineUBERON:000210844.49gold quality
granulocyteCL:000009443.41silver quality
duodenumUBERON:000211440.35gold quality
cortical plateUBERON:000534340.28gold quality
tonsilUBERON:000237239.75silver quality
C1 segment of cervical spinal cordUBERON:000646939.64gold quality
lower esophagus mucosaUBERON:003583439.45gold quality
bone marrow cellCL:000209238.45gold quality
right lungUBERON:000216737.77silver quality
transverse colonUBERON:000115737.56gold quality
brainUBERON:000095537.50gold quality
smooth muscle tissueUBERON:000113537.25gold quality
intestineUBERON:000016036.88gold quality
rectumUBERON:000105236.79silver quality
cortex of kidneyUBERON:000122536.74gold quality
fallopian tubeUBERON:000388936.63gold quality
ectocervixUBERON:001224936.52silver quality
ventricular zoneUBERON:000305336.48gold quality
right uterine tubeUBERON:000130236.36silver quality
endometriumUBERON:000129536.08silver quality

Single-cell (SCXA)

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

ExperimentMarker?Max mean expression
E-ANND-3no0.17

Regulation

Is transcription factor: no

Upstream regulators (CollecTRI, top): FIGLA, TCF3

Literature-anchored findings (GeneRIF, showing 17)

  • Of all zona pellucida (ZP) proteins, recombinant human ZPA demonstrates the highest binding activity toward acrosin (PMID:15950651)
  • Exposure of sperm to ZP proteins promoted acrosomal exocytosis and changed motility patterns. (PMID:16407501)
  • ZP proteins were detected in both the oocyte and the granulosa cells as early as the primordial follicle stage in the human. The detection of ZP proteins in the quiescent primordial follicle suggests that these proteins have been present since oogenesis. (PMID:18033806)
  • observed sequence variations in exons of ZP2 gene in women with infertility of unknown origin who exhibit abnormal zona pellucida; sperm-ovum interactions appear relatively normal in these patients [CASE REPORTS] (PMID:22889493)
  • Studies indicate that eggs from mice lacking an ortholog of ZP2 do not contain a zona pellucida (ZP), and the mice are completely infertile due to a severely reduced number of ovulated eggs in their oviducts. (PMID:23417405)
  • ZP2(51-149) sperm-binding domain is necessary for human gamete recognition and penetration through the zona pellucida. (PMID:24934154)
  • Mutations in ZP2 and ZP3 have dosage effects which can cause female infertility in humans. (PMID:28646452)
  • We identified loss-of-function pathogenic variants of ZP2 causing a structurally abnormal and dysfunctional zona pellucida, resulting in fertilization failure and female infertility (PMID:29895852)
  • Mutations in ZP1, ZP2, and ZP3 might affect the corresponding protein expression, secretion, and interaction, thus providing a mechanistic explanation for the phenotypes for female infertility. (PMID:30810869)
  • Zona Pellucida Proteins, Fibrils, and Matrix. (PMID:32569527)
  • Novel mutations in ZP1 and ZP2 cause primary infertility due to empty follicle syndrome and abnormal zona pellucida. (PMID:32829425)
  • A novel homozygous variant in ZP2 causes abnormal zona pellucida formation and female infertility. (PMID:33604805)
  • Identification of a heterozygous variant of ZP2 as a novel cause of empty follicle syndrome in humans and mice. (PMID:35211729)
  • Novel mutations in ZP2 and ZP3 cause female infertility in three patients. (PMID:35366744)
  • Novel Heterozygous Mutations in ZP2 Cause Abnormal Zona Pellucida and Female Infertility. (PMID:35595959)
  • Novel variants in ZP1, ZP2 and ZP3 associated with empty follicle syndrome and abnormal zona pellucida. (PMID:36931917)
  • ZP2 cleavage blocks polyspermy by modulating the architecture of the egg coat. (PMID:38490181)

Cross-species orthologs

3 orthologs

OrganismSymbolGene ID
danio_reriozpax4ENSDARG00000079034
mus_musculusZp2ENSMUSG00000030911
rattus_norvegicusZp2ENSRNOG00000057989

Paralogs (4): ZP4 (ENSG00000116996), QRICH2 (ENSG00000129646), ZP1 (ENSG00000149506), C16orf96 (ENSG00000205832)

Protein

Protein identifiers

Zona pellucida sperm-binding protein 2Q05996 (reviewed: Q05996)

Alternative names: Zona pellucida glycoprotein 2, Zona pellucida protein A

All UniProt accessions (1): Q05996

UniProt curated annotations — full annotation on UniProt →

Function. Component of the zona pellucida, an extracellular matrix surrounding oocytes which mediates sperm binding, induction of the acrosome reaction and prevents post-fertilization polyspermy. The zona pellucida is composed of 3 to 4 glycoproteins, ZP1, ZP2, ZP3, and ZP4. ZP2 may act as a secondary sperm receptor.

Subunit / interactions. Can form homopolymers that assemble into long fibers (in vitro). Polymers of ZP2 and ZP3 organized into long filaments cross-linked by ZP1 homodimers. Interacts with ZP3.

Subcellular location. Zona pellucida Cell membrane.

Tissue specificity. Expressed in occytes(at protein level).

Post-translational modifications. Proteolytically cleaved before the transmembrane segment to yield the secreted ectodomain incorporated in the zona pellucida. Proteolytically cleaved in the N-terminal part by the metalloendopeptidase ASTL exocytosed from cortical granules after fertilization, yielding a N-terminal peptide of about 30 kDa which remains covalently attached to the C-terminal peptide via disulfide bond(s). This cleavage may play an important role in the post-fertilization block to polyspermy. Additional proteolytically cleavage of the N-terminal peptide of 30 kDa occurs in one-cell and two-cell embryos. N-glycosylated. O-glycosylated; contains sulfate-substituted glycans.

Disease relevance. Oocyte/zygote/embryo maturation arrest 6 (OZEMA6) [MIM:618353] An autosomal recessive infertility disorder characterized by oocyte fertilization failure, due to defective sperm-binding to an abnormally thin zona pellucida in patient oocytes. The disease is caused by variants affecting the gene represented in this entry.

Domain organisation. The ZP domain is involved in the polymerization of the ZP proteins to form the zona pellucida.

Similarity. Belongs to the ZP domain family. ZPA subfamily.

Isoforms (2)

UniProt IDNamesCanonical?
Q05996-11yes
Q05996-22

RefSeq proteins (4): NP_001363160, NP_001363161, NP_001363162, NP_003451 (=MANE)

Domains & families (InterPro)

IDNameType
IPR001507ZP_domDomain
IPR017977ZP_dom_CSConserved_site
IPR042235ZP-C_domHomologous_superfamily
IPR048290ZP_chrDomain
IPR051148Zona_Pellucida_Domain_gpFamily
IPR055355ZP-CDomain
IPR055356ZP-NDomain
IPR057636Ig_ZP2_3rdDomain
IPR057637Ig_ZP2_1stDomain
IPR057638Ig_ZP2_2ndDomain

Pfam: PF00100, PF23344, PF23736, PF23738, PF23740

UniProt features (46 total): strand 17, disulfide bond 7, glycosylation site 3, helix 3, chain 2, site 2, turn 2, topological domain 2, region of interest 2, signal peptide 1, splice variant 1, sequence variant 1, propeptide 1, transmembrane region 1, domain 1

Structure

Experimental structures (PDB)

2 structures.

PDBMethodResolution (Å)
8RKEX-RAY DIFFRACTION2.7
8RKFX-RAY DIFFRACTION3.2

Predicted structure (AlphaFold)

ModelpLDDTFraction very-high
AF-Q05996-F172.520.23

Functional residue map

Curated UniProt residues grouped by drug-discovery relevance — catalytic, ligand-binding, modification, and mutation-validated positions. Source: UniProtKB sequence features.

Catalytic / active sites (2): 172–173 (cleavage; by astl); 640–641 (cleavage)

Disulfide bonds (7): 55–138, 88–106, 372–465, 403–424, 545–615, 566–634, 620–630

Glycosylation sites (3): 105, 122, 462

Function

Pathways and Gene Ontology

Reactome pathways

2 pathways

IDPathway
R-HSA-2534343Interaction With Cumulus Cells And The Zona Pellucida
R-HSA-9820841M-decay: degradation of maternal mRNAs by maternally stored factors

MSigDB gene sets: 115 (showing top): GOBP_SINGLE_FERTILIZATION, GOBP_NEGATIVE_REGULATION_OF_REPRODUCTIVE_PROCESS, MORF_BRCA1, MORF_RAD51L3, GOMF_EXTRACELLULAR_MATRIX_STRUCTURAL_CONSTITUENT, GOBP_SPERM_EGG_RECOGNITION, GOBP_REGULATION_OF_REPRODUCTIVE_PROCESS, MODULE_157, GOBP_REGULATION_OF_ACROSOME_REACTION, GOBP_ACROSOME_REACTION, GOBP_FERTILIZATION, GOBP_CELL_CELL_RECOGNITION, MORF_BCL2L11, MORF_MT4, MORF_PPP2R5B

GO Biological Process (3): binding of sperm to zona pellucida (GO:0007339), prevention of polyspermy (GO:0060468), single fertilization (GO:0007338)

GO Molecular Function (5): coreceptor activity (GO:0015026), acrosin binding (GO:0032190), structural constituent of egg coat (GO:0035804), identical protein binding (GO:0042802), protein binding (GO:0005515)

GO Cellular Component (7): extracellular region (GO:0005576), multivesicular body (GO:0005771), endoplasmic reticulum (GO:0005783), plasma membrane (GO:0005886), extracellular matrix (GO:0031012), egg coat (GO:0035805), membrane (GO:0016020)

Reactome top-level categories

Rollup of top-2 pathways:

CategoryPathways
Fertilization1
Maternal to zygotic transition (MZT)1

GO top-level categories

Rollup of top GO terms by namespace:

CategoryTerms
cellular anatomical structure2
sperm-egg recognition1
egg activation1
negative regulation of fertilization1
fertilization1
signaling receptor activity1
enzyme binding1
extracellular matrix structural constituent1
egg coat1
protein binding1
binding1
late endosome1
cytoplasm1
endomembrane system1
intracellular membrane-bounded organelle1
membrane1
cell periphery1
external encapsulating structure1
specialized extracellular matrix1

Protein interactions and networks

STRING

1390 interactions, top by confidence (×1000):

Protein AProtein BPartner UniProtScore
ZP2ZP3P21754990
ZP2ZP4Q12836987
ZP2ZP1P60852986
ZP2LMBR1Q8WVP7958
ZP2SHHQ15465896
ZP2ACRP10323796
ZP2ASTLQ6HA08780
ZP2GDF9O60383752
ZP2PLGLB1Q02325742
ZP2FGF8P55075741
ZP2GLI3P10071732
ZP2FIGLAQ6QHK4720
ZP2FGF4P08620692
ZP2ALX4Q9H161689
ZP2GREM1O60565645

IntAct

28 interactions, top by confidence:

ABTypeScore
ZP2ZP2psi-mi:“MI:0407”(direct interaction)0.600
ZP2VDAC2psi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.520
ZP3ZP3psi-mi:“MI:0914”(association)0.500
ZP2ACRpsi-mi:“MI:0407”(direct interaction)0.440
SRCZP2psi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.400
ZP2PLCG1psi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.400
ZP2PKMpsi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.400
ZP2ENO1psi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.400
ZP2GAPDHSpsi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.400
ZP2GPX4psi-mi:“MI:0915”(physical association)0.400
ZP1ZP3psi-mi:“MI:0914”(association)0.350
ZP2ZP3psi-mi:“MI:0914”(association)0.350
ZP3ZP1psi-mi:“MI:0914”(association)0.350
ZP2RHOBTB3psi-mi:“MI:0914”(association)0.350
EXT1ZP2psi-mi:“MI:0914”(association)0.350

BioGRID (8): UBR3 (Affinity Capture-MS), INTS7 (Affinity Capture-MS), TSC2 (Affinity Capture-MS), FAR2 (Affinity Capture-MS), HPCAL1 (Affinity Capture-MS), RHOBTB3 (Affinity Capture-MS), ZP2 (Affinity Capture-MS), ZP2 (Cross-Linking-MS (XL-MS))

ESM2 similar proteins: A0A0A6YXX9, A0A1Z2R986, A0A2R8Y4Y8, A0A2R8YFL7, A0A2R8YFM6, A0A8J1K1A4, A6MFL5, A6MFL6, A6MFL7, A6NHS7, A8MZH6, F8RKW5, G5E8D7, O54767, O77726, O88393, P17219, P20239, P26342, P34128, P35054, P42099, P47983, P47984, P70041, Q03167, Q05996, Q07G34, Q14CH0, Q1W7Q6, Q2Q0J1, Q3HXY1, Q3HXY2, Q3HXY3, Q3HXY4, Q3HXY5, Q3HXY6, Q3HXY8, Q3HXZ1, Q4FZG8

Diamond homologs: I6M4H4, O54766, O54767, O77726, P20239, P42099, P47983, P47984, P48829, P48834, P60852, Q00193, Q05996, Q07287, Q12836, Q62005, Q8CH34, Q9BH10, Q9BH11, Q5DID3, Q96PL2, P54097, O08524, P19218, Q5DID0, Q9D733

SIGNOR signaling

0 interactions.

Disease & clinical

Clinical variants and AI predictions

ClinVar

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

ClassificationCount (floor)
Pathogenic6
Likely pathogenic3
Uncertain significance121
Likely benign23
Benign7

Top pathogenic / likely-pathogenic (9)

Variant IDHGVSClassification
3892945NM_001376232.1(ZP2):c.860_861del (p.Val287fs)Pathogenic
4277687NM_001376232.1(ZP2):c.1928-1G>APathogenic
4278466NM_001376232.1(ZP2):c.330+1G>APathogenic
619596NM_001376232.1(ZP2):c.1695-2A>GPathogenic
619597NM_001376232.1(ZP2):c.1691_1694dup (p.Cys566fs)Pathogenic
689402NM_001376232.1(ZP2):c.1115G>C (p.Cys372Ser)Pathogenic
1803728NM_001376232.1(ZP2):c.151+1G>ALikely pathogenic
4796613NM_001376232.1(ZP2):c.1634G>A (p.Cys545Tyr)Likely pathogenic
4849460NM_001376232.1(ZP2):c.357_358del (p.Arg119fs)Likely pathogenic

SpliceAI

2704 predictions. Top by Δscore:

VariantEffectΔscore
16:21197621:ACC:Aacceptor_loss1.0000
16:21197624:T:Cacceptor_loss1.0000
16:21199737:ACTT:Adonor_loss1.0000
16:21199738:CTT:Cdonor_loss1.0000
16:21199739:TTACC:Tdonor_loss1.0000
16:21199740:TACC:Tdonor_loss1.0000
16:21199741:A:Cdonor_loss1.0000
16:21199742:C:CAdonor_loss1.0000
16:21199874:CACAG:Cacceptor_gain1.0000
16:21199877:AG:Aacceptor_gain1.0000
16:21199877:AGCTA:Aacceptor_loss1.0000
16:21199879:C:CCacceptor_gain1.0000
16:21199879:CT:Cacceptor_loss1.0000
16:21199888:A:ACacceptor_gain1.0000
16:21199894:C:CTacceptor_gain1.0000
16:21201364:CCTA:Cdonor_loss1.0000
16:21201365:CTA:Cdonor_loss1.0000
16:21201367:A:ACdonor_gain1.0000
16:21201367:A:AGdonor_loss1.0000
16:21201367:AC:Adonor_gain1.0000
16:21201368:C:CCdonor_gain1.0000
16:21201368:CC:Cdonor_gain1.0000
16:21201368:CCCAT:Cdonor_gain1.0000
16:21201554:ATTAT:Aacceptor_gain1.0000
16:21201555:TTAT:Tacceptor_gain1.0000
16:21201556:TAT:Tacceptor_gain1.0000
16:21201557:AT:Aacceptor_gain1.0000
16:21201558:TC:Tacceptor_loss1.0000
16:21201559:C:CAacceptor_loss1.0000
16:21201559:C:CCacceptor_gain1.0000

AlphaMissense

4856 scored. Top likely-pathogenic:

VariantProtein changeam_pathogenicity
16:21201425:C:AW546C0.986
16:21201425:C:GW546C0.986
16:21199779:A:CF598L0.980
16:21199779:A:TF598L0.980
16:21199781:A:GF598L0.980
16:21201424:C:GA547P0.980
16:21202276:C:GC372S0.980
16:21202277:A:TC372S0.980
16:21201429:C:GC545S0.979
16:21201430:A:TC545S0.979
16:21201386:C:AW559C0.976
16:21201386:C:GW559C0.976
16:21202141:A:GF417S0.975
16:21201430:A:GC545R0.973
16:21202120:C:GC424S0.973
16:21202121:A:TC424S0.973
16:21204317:A:GC261R0.971
16:21201428:G:CC545W0.970
16:21201429:C:TC545Y0.969
16:21202002:A:CY437D0.969
16:21205563:A:GW184R0.968
16:21205563:A:TW184R0.968
16:21202140:G:CF417L0.967
16:21202140:G:TF417L0.967
16:21202142:A:GF417L0.967
16:21199653:C:GC615S0.966
16:21199654:A:TC615S0.966
16:21202141:A:CF417C0.966
16:21199652:G:CC615W0.965
16:21199795:A:GF593S0.964

dbSNP variants (sampled 300 via entrez): RS1000253199 (16:21202817 TACTTAA>T), RS1000321457 (16:21197766 C>T), RS1000549578 (16:21208394 G>A), RS1001368370 (16:21201207 A>AC), RS1001461454 (16:21207758 A>G), RS1001524201 (16:21202696 G>T), RS1001578445 (16:21197578 A>T), RS1001656763 (16:21202973 C>A,T), RS1002086273 (16:21196996 G>A), RS1002216933 (16:21211929 A>C,T), RS1002424478 (16:21207227 A>G), RS1002842386 (16:21215989 T>G), RS1002986829 (16:21216490 G>C), RS1003162948 (16:21206050 T>C,G), RS1003206443 (16:21205339 G>A)

Disease associations

OMIM: gene MIM:182888 | disease phenotypes: MIM:618353, MIM:612164

GenCC curated gene-disease

DiseaseClassificationInheritance
oocyte maturation defect 6DefinitiveAutosomal recessive
inherited oocyte maturation defectModerateAutosomal dominant
female infertility due to zona pellucida defectSupportiveAutosomal dominant

Mondo (4): oocyte maturation defect 6 (MONDO:0032696), developmental and epileptic encephalopathy, 4 (MONDO:0012812), inherited oocyte maturation defect (MONDO:0014769), female infertility due to zona pellucida defect (MONDO:0014342)

Orphanet (3): Early infantile developmental and epileptic encephalopathy (Orphanet:1934), Dravet syndrome (Orphanet:33069), STXBP1-related encephalopathy (Orphanet:599373)

HPO phenotypes

3 total (3 of 3 shown, HPO-id order):

HPOTerm
HP:0000007Autosomal recessive inheritance
HP:0008222Female infertility
HP:0020157Thin zona pellucida

GWAS associations

1 associations (top):

StudyTraitp-value
GCST003226_4Pelvic organ prolapse4.000000e-07

MeSH disease descriptors (1)

DescriptorNameTree numbers
C567404Epileptic Encephalopathy, Early Infantile, 4 (supp.)

Drugs & pharmacology

Drug and pharmacology data

Is drug target: no

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

CTD chemical–gene interactions

9 total (human), top 9 by PubMed support.

ChemicalActions (top 5)PubMed papers
pirinixic acidaffects binding, increases activity, increases expression1
kojic aciddecreases expression1
S-(1,2-dichlorovinyl)cysteineaffects cotreatment, increases expression1
theaflavin-3,3’-digallateaffects expression1
Resveratrolaffects cotreatment, decreases expression1
Arbutindecreases expression1
Benzo(a)pyreneincreases methylation1
Copperaffects cotreatment, decreases expression1
Lipopolysaccharidesincreases expression, affects cotreatment1

Clinical trials (associated diseases)

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