CITED1/MSG1 [5H6]

CITED1 belongs to CITED family and only in melanocytes and testis. It is a transcriptional cofactor expressed in the metanephric mesenchyme (MM) of the embryonic kidney and is down-regulated as these cells undergo epithelial differentiation. It is thought that CITED1 may play a role in maintaining MM cells in an undifferentiated state. Wilms’ tumors are thought to arise from abnormal postnatal retention and dysregulated differentiation of nephrogenic progenitor cells that originate as a condensed MM within embryonic kidneys. CITED1 expression has been shown to persist in blastemal cell populations of human WT. In the developing embryonic kidney, CITED1 expression is seen in the cytoplasmic compartment. In WT, expression of CITED1 is detected in the nuclear compartment of tumor cells. It has been suggested that persistent expression of CITED1 in the MM could play a role in WT initiation and pathogenesis.