Immediate early response 3 (IER3)

Immediate early response 3 (IER3) is a radiation-inducible gene encoding a protein that modulates cellular survival and death pathways, particularly under stress, such as DNA damage or inflammatory signals. IER3 regulates key signaling networks, including ERK, NF-κB, and PI3K/AKT, influencing cell fate by promoting resistance to apoptosis induced by Fas or tumor necrosis factor alpha. Notably, IER3 exhibits dual roles in cancer biology: it can function as a tumor suppressor or as an oncogene, depending on cellular context and regulatory pathways—promoting survival and poor prognosis in some cancers (e.g., cervical carcinoma) and favorable outcomes in others (e.g., neuroblastoma). IER3 also interacts with other genes such as EGR2 and ADAM19 to regulate proliferation, apoptosis, and differentiation. Its versatile functions make it a potential biomarker and a challenging therapeutic target due to context-dependent effects.

Other names

PACAP-responsive gene 1 proteinRadiation-inducible immediate-early gene IEX-1Protein PRG1Immediate early response 3 proteinDifferentiation-dependent gene 2 proteinProtein DIF-2Immediate early protein GLY96IEX1PRG1DIF2IEX-1DIF-2IEX-1Lgly96anti-death protein

Drugs modulate IER3-dependent survival and stress resistance pathways, notably via PI3K/AKT and ERK signaling and apoptosis inhibition or enhancement