Aryl hydrocarbon receptor nuclear translocator (ARNT) isoforms control lymphoid cancer cell proliferation through differentially regulating tumor suppressor p53 activity.

The aryl hydrocarbon receptor nuclear translocator (ARNT) is involved in xenobiotic and hypoxic responses, and we previously showed that ARNT also regulates nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) signaling by altering the DNA binding activity of the RelB subunit. However, our initial study of ARNT-mediated RelB modulation was based on simultaneous suppression of the two ARNT isoforms, isoform 1 and 3, and precluded the examination of their individual functions. We find here that while normal lymphocytes harbor equal levels of isoform 1 and 3, lymphoid malignancies exhibit a shift to higher levels of ARNT isoform 1.