lin-59 encodes a SET domain-containing protein that is most closely related to the ASH1 group of histone-lysine N-methyltransferases; lin-59 was originally identified in screens for mutations that disrupt male tail development and subsequently was shown to be an essential gene required for development and fate specification of a number of different cells types, including those of the male tail, male and hermaphrodite hindgut, and egg-laying system; lin-59 has been shown to positively regulate expression of at least four genes: cdh-3, egl-5, mab-5, and nac-2; a lin-59::gfp reporter fusion is first expressed during the proliferative stage of embryonic development and expression continues, in most cells, throughout larval development and adulthood.
Predicted to enable histone H3K36 methyltransferase activity. Involved in several processes, including ectodermal cell fate specification; egg-laying behavior; and nematode male tail tip morphogenesis. Predicted to be located in nucleus. Predicted to be part of chromatin. Expressed in hypodermis; intestine; and muscle cell. Used to study leukemia. Human ortholog(s) of this gene implicated in autosomal dominant intellectual developmental disorder 52. Is an ortholog of human ASH1L (ASH1 like histone lysine methyltransferase).