The present invention provides isolated and substantially purified nucleic
acids encoding human Jade-1 (for "gene" for Apoptosis and Differentiation
in Epithelia) and related nucleic acids. The invention further provides
Jade protein, which, when expressed in a eukaryotic cell, has an apparent
molecular weight of 64 kD. We have discovered that Jade protein functions
1 apoptosis and regulation of cell cycle as well as in cellular
differentiation process. Accordingly, the Jade-family of genes and their
gene products provide novel diagnostic and prognostic tools for
identifying and/or classifying diseases involving abnormal apoptosis and
defective cell cycle.
