IGF2

Type

Gene (protein-coding, imprinted)

Description

IGF2 (Insulin-like Growth Factor 2) encodes a potent mitogenic peptide hormone. It is paternally expressed and maternally silenced through genomic imprinting — one of the most well-studied imprinted genes. Loss of imprinting (LOI) at the IGF2 locus leads to biallelic expression and is a common epigenetic alteration in cancer, contributing to increased proliferation through autocrine and paracrine signaling. IGF2 is a central gene in the kinship theory of genomic imprinting.

External identifiers

• HGNC: 5466
• NCBI Gene: 3481
• UniProt: P01344

Wiki sources

• haig2004-genomic-imprinting-kinship — Kinship theory and IGF2’s role in maternal-fetal conflict
• falls1999-genomic-imprinting-disease — IGF2 LOI in human disease
• monk2019-genomic-imprinting-disorders — Imprinting disorders involving IGF2
• patten2014-evolution-genomic-imprinting — Evolutionary theory of IGF2 imprinting