HMGA is a family ofhigh mobility group proteins characterized by anAT-hook. They code for a "small, nonhistone, chromatin-associated protein that has no intrinsic transcriptional activity but can modulate transcription by altering the chromatin architecture".^[1] Mammals have two orthologs: HMGA1 and HMGA2.

In mouse embryonic stem cells it has been demonstrated that both HMGA proteins binds uniformly to the DNA due to theirAT-hook domains, with a slight preference for AT-rich regions/^[2] Such regions tend to lack coding genes, an observation that argues against a direct role in transcriptional control and in agreement with previous studies, suggest that these proteins have a structural role in the chromatin, similar tohistone.

Normally, when cells are subjected to increasedDNA damage (such as the formation of6-O-methylguanine) this causes an increase inapoptosis (programmed cell death). However, cells with diminished activity for either proteinsHMGA1 orHMGA2 (or both together) are more tolerant of such DNA damage than cells in which these proteins are not diminished.^[3] Thus a normal function of the HMGA1 and HMGA2 proteins appears to be to signal the presence of DNA damage leading to induction of apoptosis.^[3]

Variations in HMGA2 to have a moderate association with adult height.^[4][5]

• HMGA1
• HMGA2

• HMGA+Proteins at the U.S. National Library of MedicineMedical Subject Headings (MeSH)

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