Four heat shock factor proteins (HSFs) have been identified in vertebrates (HSF1-4) []. HSF2 is localised to the cytoplasm duringnormal growth and moves to the nucleus upon activation [], where it specifically binds heat shock promoter elements (HSE) and activates transcription. HSF2 may not be directly involved in the stress response, but rather in cell differentiation and development [, ]. HSF1 and HSF2 can form heterotrimers, which could be a mechanism regulating transcription [].
Heat shock factor 2-binding protein (HSF2BP) may be involved in modulating HSF2 activation in testis []. It may play a role in regulating BNC1 (a zinc finger transcriptional factor) activity and subcellular localization during spermatogenesis [].
