Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jun 1, 2026

NPAS1

NPAS1 is a basic helix-loop-helix transcription factor. Npas1 is expressed in the developing forebrain in neuronal precursors of GABAergic projection neurons in the globus pallidus and basal forebrain as well as cortical and hippocampal interneurons. Experiments in mice have linked neurons expressing Npas1 in the external globus pallidus to motor control and those in the basal forebrain to sleep-wake control and stress responsiveness. Knockout and gene expression experiments have linked Npas1 to the control of behaviors and genes related to neuropsychiatric disorders

Last revised
Jun 1, 2026
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≈ 3 min
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neuronal PAS domain protein 1
Identifiers
SymbolNPAS1
NCBI gene4861
HGNC7894
OMIM603346
RefSeqNM_002517
UniProtQ99742
Other data
LocusChr. 19 q13.2-13.3
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StructuresSwiss-model
DomainsInterPro

NPAS1 is a basic helix-loop-helix transcription factor.12 Npas1 is expressed in the developing forebrain in neuronal precursors of GABAergic projection neurons in the globus pallidus and basal forebrain as well as cortical and hippocampal interneurons3456. Experiments in mice have linked neurons expressing Npas1 in the external globus pallidus to motor control78 and those in the basal forebrain to sleep-wake control9 and stress responsiveness10. Knockout and gene expression experiments have linked Npas1 to the control of behaviors and genes related to neuropsychiatric disorders 1112

See also

See also

References

References

  1. Zhou YD, Barnard M, Tian H, Li X, Ring HZ, Francke U, Shelton J, Richardson J, Russell DW, McKnight SL (January 1997). "Molecular characterization of two mammalian bHLH-PAS domain proteins selectively expressed in the central nervous system". Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 94 (2): 713–8. Bibcode:1997PNAS...94..713Z. doi:10.1073/pnas.94.2.713. PMC 19579. PMID 9012850.
  2. Hogenesch JB, Chan WK, Jackiw VH, Brown RC, Gu YZ, Pray-Grant M, Perdew GH, Bradfield CA (March 1997). "Characterization of a subset of the basic helix-loop-helix-PAS superfamily that interacts with components of the dioxin signaling pathway". J. Biol. Chem. 272 (13): 8581–93. doi:10.1074/jbc.272.13.8581. PMID 9079689.
  3. Cobos, Inma; Long, Jason E.; Thwin, Myo T.; Rubenstein, John L. (2006-07-01). "Cellular Patterns of Transcription Factor Expression in Developing Cortical Interneurons". Cerebral Cortex. 16 (suppl_1): i82–i88. doi:10.1093/cercor/bhk003. ISSN 1460-2199.
  4. Flandin, Pierre; Kimura, Shioko; Rubenstein, John L. R. (2010-02-24). "The Progenitor Zone of the Ventral Medial Ganglionic Eminence Requires Nkx2-1 to Generate Most of the Globus Pallidus But Few Neocortical Interneurons". The Journal of Neuroscience. 30 (8): 2812–2823. doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.4228-09.2010. ISSN 0270-6474. PMC 2865856.
  5. Nóbrega-Pereira, Sandrina; Gelman, Diego; Bartolini, Giorgia; Pla, Ramón; Pierani, Alessandra; Marín, Oscar (2010-02-24). "Origin and Molecular Specification of Globus Pallidus Neurons". The Journal of Neuroscience. 30 (8): 2824–2834. doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.4023-09.2010. ISSN 0270-6474. PMC 6633933.
  6. Stanco, Amelia; Pla, Ramón; Vogt, Daniel; Chen, Yiran; Mandal, Shyamali; Walker, Jamie; Hunt, Robert; Lindtner, Susan; Erdman, Carolyn; Pieper, Andrew; Hamilton, Steven; Xu, Duan; Baraban, Scott; Rubenstein, John (3 Dec 2014). "NPAS1 Represses the Generation of Specific Subtypes of Cortical Interneurons". Neuron. 84 (5): 940–953. doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2014.10.040. PMC 4258152. PMID 25467980.
  7. Hernandez, V. M.; Hegeman, D. J.; Cui, Q.; Kelver, D. A.; Fiske, M. P.; Glajch, K. E.; Pitt, J. E.; Huang, T. Y.; Justice, N. J.; Chan, C. S. (2015-08-26). "Parvalbumin+ Neurons and Npas1+ Neurons Are Distinct Neuron Classes in the Mouse External Globus Pallidus". Journal of Neuroscience. 35 (34): 11830–11847. doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.4672-14.2015. ISSN 0270-6474.
  8. Pamukcu, Arin; Cui, Qiaoling; Xenias, Harry S.; Berceau, Brianna L.; Augustine, Elizabeth C.; Fan, Isabel; Chalasani, Saivasudha; Hantman, Adam W.; Lerner, Talia N.; Boca, Simina M.; Chan, C. Savio (2020-10-07). "Parvalbumin + and Npas1 + Pallidal Neurons Have Distinct Circuit Topology and Function". The Journal of Neuroscience. 40 (41): 7855–7876. doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0361-20.2020. ISSN 0270-6474. PMC 7548687.
  9. Troppoli, Timothy A.; Yang, Chun; Katsuki, Fumi; Uygun, David S.; Lin, Ilyan; Aguilar, David D.; Spratt, Tristan; Basheer, Radhika; McNally, James M.; Savio Chan, C.; McKenna, James T.; Brown, Ritchie E. (2024-05-21). "Neuronal PAS domain 1 identifies a major subpopulation of wakefulness-promoting GABAergic neurons in the basal forebrain". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 121 (21). doi:10.1073/pnas.2321410121. ISSN 0027-8424. PMC 11127008. PMID 38748575.
  10. Morais-Silva, Gessynger; Campbell, Rianne R.; Nam, Hyungwoo; Basu, Mahashweta; Pagliusi, Marco; Fox, Megan E.; Chan, C. Savio; Iñiguez, Sergio D.; Ament, Seth; Cramer, Nathan; Marin, Marcelo Tadeu; Lobo, Mary Kay (2023-01-18). "Molecular, Circuit, and Stress Response Characterization of Ventral Pallidum Npas1-Neurons". The Journal of Neuroscience. 43 (3): 405–418. doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0971-22.2022. ISSN 0270-6474.
  11. Erbel-Sieler, Claudia; Dudley, Carol; Zhou, Yudong; Wu, Xinle; Estill, Sandi Jo; Han, Tina; Diaz-Arrastia, Ramon; Brunskill, Eric W.; Potter, S. Steven; McKnight, Steven L. (2004-09-14). "Behavioral and regulatory abnormalities in mice deficient in the NPAS1 and NPAS3 transcription factors". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 101 (37): 13648–13653. doi:10.1073/pnas.0405310101. ISSN 0027-8424. PMC 518807. PMID 15347806.
  12. Michaelson, Jacob J.; Shin, Min-Kyoo; Koh, Jin-Young; Brueggeman, Leo; Zhang, Angela; Katzman, Aaron; McDaniel, Latisha; Fang, Mimi; Pufall, Miles; Pieper, Andrew A. (2017). "Neuronal PAS Domain Proteins 1 and 3 Are Master Regulators of Neuropsychiatric Risk Genes". Biological Psychiatry. 82 (3): 213–223. doi:10.1016/j.biopsych.2017.03.021. PMC 6901278. PMID 28499489.
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