MAGE-A genes are a subfamily of the melanoma antigen genes (MAGEs), whose expression is restricted to tumour cells of different origin and normal tissues of the human germline [, ].MAGEA2 may act by binding histone deacetylase (HDAC) and repressing p53-dependent apoptosis. In addition to its anti-apoptotic effect, MAGEA2 may have a role in the early progression to malignancy by interfering with PML (promyelocytic leukemia) tumour suppressor/p53 function [].
