Enhancer of mRNA-decapping protein 4

EDC4 (Enhancer of mRNA-decapping protein 4) is a 151.7 kDa protein that modulates mRNA degradation through the decapping pathway. It functions as a component of a complex with DCP2 and DCP1A, promoting their interaction and enhancing DCP2 catalytic activity for decapping of ARE-containing mRNAs (UniProt: Q6P2E9).

The protein operates within the mRNA quality-control and decay machinery, a process relevant to post-transcriptional gene regulation in neural tissues. UniProt records no explicit disease associations for EDC4.

In Alzheimer's disease, EDC4 shows consistent downregulation in post-mortem AD brain tissue compared to age-matched controls, with a mean log2 fold-change of −0.41 across subcellular fractions (Chaparral AD proteomics). This reduced expression may reflect altered mRNA decay dynamics in neurodegeneration, though the functional significance of EDC4 loss in AD pathology remains to be characterized.