The negative transcription factor E4BP4 is associated with circadian clock protein PERIOD2

The bZIP transcription factor E4BP4, is a mammalian homologue of vrille that functions as a key negative component of the circadian clock. We have shown that the E4BP4-binding site (B-site) is required in addition to a non-canonical E-box (E2 enhancer) for robust circadian Period2 (Per2) expression in the cell-autonomous clock. While the E2 enhancer and the B-site are closely situated, correlations between each component bound to the E2 enhancer and the B-site remain obscure. Here, we show that E4BP4 interacts with PER2, which represses transcriptional activity via the E-box enhancer. Interaction with PER2 required the carboxyl-terminal region that contains the repression domain of E4BP4. We also found that E4BP4 interacts with CRYPTOCHROME2 (CRY2), a key negative regulator in the mammalian circadian clock. These results suggest that E4BP4 is a component of the negative regulator complex of mammalian circadian clocks.