UNCX is a paired-type homeodomain transcription factor with primary roles in skeletal development and neurogenesis 1. During normal development, UNCX regulates somitogenesis and is required for proper rib and vertebral patterning 2. The gene shows tissue-specific expression in the eye, brain, and kidney 1, and zebrafish studies suggest it coordinates growth and innervation of somitic muscles 3. In disease contexts, aberrant UNCX expression has been identified as leukemogenic in acute myeloid leukemia (AML), where epigenetic modifications elevate expression in approximately 37% of AML patients 1. Increased UNCX expression impairs myeloid cell proliferation and differentiation, with enrichment of gene expression changes affecting cell cycle regulators like MAP2K1 and CCNA1 1. More recently, a functional susceptibility variant (rs78148157) in an UNCX enhancer was identified as conferring genetic risk for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis through EGR1-mediated upregulation, with zebrafish studies demonstrating that excess UNCX causes body curvature and defective neurogenesis 4. Notably, UNCX shows evolutionary conservation in epigenetic aging signatures across vertebrates, with age-related methylation changes in neural developmental genes 5.