“Transmembrane adaptor protein WBP1L: searching for its binding partners to understand its role in hematopoiesis”

Transmembrane adaptor protein WBP1L, also known as Outcome Predictor of Acute Leukemia 1 (OPAL1) was identified nearly 20 years ago as a positive prognostic marker in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia. More recently, elevated WBP1L expression has also been linked to positive outcomes in ovarian cancer. Despite these clinical associations, the physiological function of WBP1L has long remained unclear. Recently we demonstrated its involvement in the regulation of hematopoiesis, hematopoietic stem cell functionality and hematopoietic stem cell performance during transplantation. As an adaptor protein, WBP1L’s activity depends on its interacting partners. This presentation will describe our efforts to identify these proteins and understand their contributions to WBP1L function, focusing on two novel interactions: one with the receptor for interferon gamma and the other with the SCF^β-TRCP1 ubiquitin ligase complex.