Prediction of IER5 structure and function using a bioinformatics approach

Immediate-early response gene 5 (IER5) is a gene involved in the regulation of the cell cycle, and its structure and function have been investigated by bioinformatics analyses. The present study determined the sites of promoter methylation and gene ontology (GO) annotations associated with IER5. In addition, we conducted a prediction analysis to determine the physical and chemical properties, hydrophobicity/hydrophilicity, posttranslational modification, subcellular localization, transmembrane structure, signal peptide and secondary and tertiary structures of IER5. One CpG island and several methylated sites were identified close to the promoter of IER5. The GO analysis suggested that IER5 could bind ions and proteins that were mainly associated with metabolic processes. IER5 comprised 327 amino acids and was reported to be an unstable hydrophilic protein with an isoelectric point of 4.91. A total of 18 O-glycosylation sites and 22 phosphorylation sites were identified within this protein. The subcellular localization of IER5 was mainly in the nucleus, and its main secondary structural element was the α-helix. Bioinformatic analyses of the features of IER5 may improve understanding of its structure and function; however, experimental verification is required.