The protein encoded by this gene belongs to the highly conserved cyclin family, whose members are characterized by a dramatic periodicity in protein abundance through the cell cycle. Cyclins function as regulators of CDK kinases. Different cyclins exhibit distinct expression and degradation patterns which contribute to the temporal coordination of each mitotic event. This cyclin forms a complex with CDK4 or CDK6 and functions as a regulatory subunit of the complex, whose activity is required for cell cycle G1/S transition. This protein has been shown to interact with and be involved in the phosphorylation of tumor suppressor protein Rb. Knockout studies of the homologous gene in mouse suggest the essential roles of this gene in ovarian granulosa and germ cell proliferation. High level expression of this gene was observed in ovarian and testicular tumors. Mutations in this gene are associated with megalencephaly-polymicrogyria-polydactyly-hydrocephalus syndrome 3 (MPPH3). [provided by RefSeq, Sep 2014] CIViC Summary for CCND2 Gene Cyclin D has been shown in many cancer types to be misregulated. Well established for their oncogenic properties, the cyclins and the cyclin-dependent kinases (CDK's) they activate have been the focus of major research and development efforts over the past decade. The methods by which the cyclins are misregulated are widely variable, ranging from genomic amplification to changes in promoter methylation. While Cyclin D2 has only been found to be significantly deregulated in glioma, Cyclin D1 in particular seems to be a pan-cancer actor. Cyclin D misregulation has been shown to lead to poorer outcomes in a number of studies, and currently there are no FDA-approved targeted therapies.
Forensic Context
A study in humans demonstrated that the CCND2 is a WNT pathway target with expression significantly higher in the fibroblast subcluster FB1 from patients with organic erectile dysfunction compared to normal tissue [Zhao et al. DOI:10.1038/s41467-022-31950-9].