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Showing papers on "Complementary DNA published in 1993"


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: An improved version of the yeast two-hybrid system is developed and used to isolate human cDNAs encoding proteins able to bind p110RB to demonstrate that PP-1 alpha isoforms preferentially bind the hypophosphorylated form of p110 RB.
Abstract: The retinoblastoma protein {pll0 nB) interacts with many cellular proteins in complexes potentially important for its growth-suppressing [unction. We have developed and used an improved version of the yeast two-hybrid system to isolate human cDNAs encoding proteins able to bind pll0 RB. One clone encodes a novel type 1 protein phosphatase catalytic subunit (PP-la2), which differs from the originally defined PP-lc~ by an amino-terminal l 1-amino-acid insert. In vitro-binding assays demonstrated that PP-lc~ isoforms preferentially bind the hypophosphorylated form of p ll0 RB. Moreover, similar pll0 RB sequences are required for binding PP-lc~2 and SV40 large T antigen. Cell cycle synchrony experiments revealed that this association occurs from mitosis to early Gv The implications of these findings on the regulation of both proteins are discussed.

1,470 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
26 Nov 1993-Science
TL;DR: A yeast artificial chromosome clone that spans the Pto region was identified and used to probe a leaf complementary DNA (cDNA) library, suggesting a role for Pto in a signal transduction pathway.
Abstract: The Pto gene in tomato confers resistance to races of Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato that carry the avirulence gene avrPto. A yeast artificial chromosome clone that spans the Pto region was identified and used to probe a leaf complementary DNA (cDNA) library. A cDNA clone was isolated that represents a gene family, at least six members of which genetically cosegregate with Pto. When susceptible tomato plants were transformed with a cDNA from this family, they were resistant to the pathogen. Analysis of the amino acid sequence revealed similarity to serine-threonine protein kinases, suggesting a role for Pto in a signal transduction pathway.

1,439 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The data suggest that FAT and CD36 belong to a family of proteins that bind/transport long-chain fatty acids or function as regulators of these processes.

971 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
04 Jun 1993-Cell
TL;DR: It is suggested that the circles arise from normal splicing processes as a consequence of the unusual genomic structure surrounding the Sry locus in the mouse.

949 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Hep-NOS appears to be an inducible form of NOS that is distinct from mac-N OS as well as brain and endothelial NOS isozymes.
Abstract: Nitric oxide is a short-lived biologic mediator for diverse cell types. Synthesis of an inducible nitric oxide synthase (NOS) in murine macrophages is stimulated by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and interferon gamma. In human hepatocytes, NOS activity is induced by treatment with a combination of tumor necrosis factor, interleukin 1, interferon gamma, and LPS. We now report the molecular cloning and expression of an inducible human hepatocyte NOS (hep-NOS) cDNA. hep-NOS has 80% amino acid sequence homology to macrophage NOS (mac-NOS). Like other NOS isoforms, recognition sites for FMN, FAD, and NADPH are present, as well as a consensus calmodulin binding site. NOS activity in human 293 kidney cells transfected with hep-NOS cDNA is diminished by Ca2+ chelation and a calmodulin antagonist, reflecting a Ca2+ dependence not evident for mac-NOS. Northern blot analysis with hep-NOS cDNA reveals a 4.5-kb mRNA in both human hepatocytes and aortic smooth muscle cells following stimulation with LPS and cytokines. Human genomic Southern blots probed with human hep-NOS and human endothelial NOS cDNA clones display different genomic restriction enzyme fragments, suggesting distinct gene products for these NOS isoforms. hep-NOS appears to be an inducible form of NOS that is distinct from mac-NOS as well as brain and endothelial NOS isozymes.

850 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
30 Jul 1993-Science
TL;DR: A method was developed to clone, without the use of specific functional assays, complementary DNAs (cDNAs) that carry specific amino-terminal signal sequences, such as those encoding intercellular signal-transducing molecules and receptors.
Abstract: A method was developed to clone, without the use of specific functional assays, complementary DNAs (cDNAs) that carry specific amino-terminal signal sequences, such as those encoding intercellular signal-transducing molecules and receptors. The vector used in this system directed the cell surface expression of interleukin-2 receptor fusion proteins when inserts with signal sequences were cloned in-frame with the correct orientation. An expression cDNA library was constructed from a bone marrow stromal cell line, which contained 5' portion-enriched cDNAs (the average size was 400 base pairs). Two cDNAs that encoded putative cytokine molecules, stromal cell-derived factor-1 alpha (SDF-1 alpha) and SDF-1 beta, which belong to the intercrine-macrophage inflammatory protein superfamily, were cloned.

792 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Computer analysis of the nucleic acid and the deduced amino acid sequence of the Ki-67 antigen confirmed that the cDNA encodes for a nuclear and short-lived protein without any significant homology to known sequences.
Abstract: The antigen defined by mAb Ki-67 is a human nuclear protein the expression of which is strictly associated with cell proliferation and which is widely used in routine pathology as a "proliferation marker" to measure the growth fraction of cells in human tumors. Ki-67 detects a double band with apparent molecular weights of 395 and 345 kD in immunoblots of proteins from proliferating cells. We cloned and sequenced the full length cDNA, identified two differentially spliced isoforms of mRNA with open reading frames of 9,768 and 8,688 bp encoding for this cell proliferation-associated protein with calculated molecular weights of 358,761 D and 319,508 D, respectively. New mAbs against a bacterially expressed part and a synthetic polypeptide deduced from the isolated cDNA react with the native Ki-67 antigen, thus providing a circle of evidence that we have cloned the authentic Ki-67 antigen cDNA. The central part of the Ki-67 antigen cDNA contains a large 6,845-bp exon with 16 tandemly repeated 366-bp elements, the "Ki-67 repeats", each including a highly conserved new motif of 66 bp, the "Ki-67 motif", which encodes for the epitope detected by Ki-67. Computer analysis of the nucleic acid and the deduced amino acid sequence of the Ki-67 antigen confirmed that the cDNA encodes for a nuclear and short-lived protein without any significant homology to known sequences. Ki-67 antigen-specific antisense oligonucleotides inhibit the proliferation of IM-9 cell line cells, indicating that the Ki-67 antigen may be an absolute requirement for maintaining cell proliferation. We conclude that the Ki-67 antigen defines a new category of cell cycle-associated nuclear nonhistone proteins.

768 citations


Journal Article
TL;DR: CTLA-8 may belong to the growing set of virus-captured functionally important cellular genes related to the immune system or to cell death and cell survival, and is discussed in the context of other genes of this herpesvirus homologous to known immunologically active molecules.
Abstract: To detect novel molecules involved in immune functions, a subtracted cDNA library between closely related murine lymphoid cells was prepared using improved technology. Differential screening of this library yielded several clones with a very restricted tissue specificity, including one that we named CTLA-8. CTLA-8 transcripts could be detected only in T cell hybridoma clones related to the one used to prepare the library. Southern blots showed that the CTLA-8 gene was single copy in mice, rats, and humans. By radioactive in situ hybridization, the CTLA-8 gene was mapped at a single site on mouse chromosome 1A and human chromosome 2q31, in a known interspecific syntenic region. The CTLA-8 cDNA sequence indicated the presence, in the 3'-untranslated region of the mRNA, of AU-rich repeats previously found in the mRNA of various cytokines, growth factors, and oncogenes. The CTLA-8 cDNA contained an open reading frame encoding a putative protein of 150 amino acids. This protein was 57% homologous to the putative protein encoded by the ORF13 gene of herpesvirus Saimiri, a T lymphotropic virus. These findings are discussed in the context of other genes of this herpesvirus homologous to known immunologically active molecules. More generally, CTLA-8 may belong to the growing set of virus-captured functionally important cellular genes related to the immune system or to cell death and cell survival.

710 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The expressed AT2 receptor mediated angiotensin II-induced inhibition of protein tyrosine phosphatase, an action that was dependent on a pertussis toxin-sensitive G-protein-coupled mechanism in COS-7 cells, and suggested novel functional roles of the renin-angiotens in system in cross-talk with phosphotyrosine signaling by modulating protein phosphotYrosine levels.

705 citations


01 Jan 1993
TL;DR: In this article, a subtracted cDNA library between closely related murine lymphoid cells was prepared using improved technology, which yielded several clones with a very restricted tissue specificity, including one that was named CTLA-8, which was detected only in T cell hybridoma clones related to the one used to prepare the library.
Abstract: To detect novel molecules involved in immune functions, a subtracted cDNA library between closely related murine lymphoid cells was prepared using improved technology. Differential screening of this library yielded several clones with a very restricted tissue specificity, including one that we named CTLA-8. CTLA-8 transcripts could be detected only in T cell hybridoma clones related to the one used to prepare the library. Southern blots showed that the CTLA-8 gene was single copy in mice, rats, and humans. By radioactive in situ hybridization, the CTLA-8 gene was mapped at a single site on mouse chromosome 1A and human chromosome 2q31, in a known interspecific syntenic region. The CTLA-8 cDNA sequence indicated the presence, in the 3"untranslated region of the mRNA, of AU-rich repeats previously found in the mRNA of various cytokines, growth factors, and oncogenes. The CTLA-8 cDNA contained an open reading frame encoding a putative protein of 150 amino acids. This protein was 57% homologous to the putative protein encoded by the ORF13 gene of herpesvirus Saimiri, a T lymphotropic virus. These findings are discussed in the context of other genes of this herpesvirus homologous to known immunologically active molecules. More generally, CTLA-8 may belong to the growing set of virus-captured functionally important cellular genes related to the immune system or to cell death and cell survival. Journal of Immunology, 1993, 150: 5445.

680 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: By RNA blot analysis, human adrenomedullin mRNA was found to be highly expressed in several tissues including adrenal medulla, ventricle, lung and kidney as well as pheochromocytoma.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: It is suggested that OSF-2 functions as a homophilic adhesion molecule in bone formation by showing a high amino acid sequence conservation except for the signal sequence and two regions in the C-terminal domain in which 'in-frame' insertions or deleting are observed, implying alternative splicing events.
Abstract: A cDNA library prepared from the mouse osteoblastic cell line MC3T3-E1 was screened for the presence of specifically expressed genes by employing a combined subtraction hybridization/differential screening approach. A cDNA was identified and sequenced which encodes a protein designated osteoblast-specific factor 2 (OSF-2) comprising 811 amino acids. OSF-2 has a typical signal sequence, followed by a cysteine-rich domain, a fourfold repeated domain and a C-terminal domain. The protein lacks a typical transmembrane region. The fourfold repeated domain of OSF-2 shows homology with the insect protein fasciclin I. RNA analyses revealed that OSF-2 is expressed in bone and to a lesser extent in lung, but not in other tissues. Mouse OSF-2 cDNA was subsequently used as a probe to clone the human counterpart. Mouse and human OSF-2 show a high amino acid sequence conservation except for the signal sequence and two regions in the C-terminal domain in which 'in-frame' insertions or deletions are observed, implying alternative splicing events. On the basis of the amino acid sequence homology with fasciclin I, we suggest that OSF-2 functions as a homophilic adhesion molecule in bone formation.

Journal ArticleDOI
15 Mar 1993-Blood
TL;DR: CDNA clones encoding CD68 are isolated from a U937 cDNA library by transient expression in COS cells and panning with the anti-CD68 monoclonal antibodies Y2/131, Y1/82A, EBM11, and Ki-M6.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Results suggest that a MYB-related transcription factor is involved in the regulation of genes that are responsive to water stress in Arabidopsis, and may be responsive to dehydration at the transcriptional level.
Abstract: An Arabidopsis cDNA (Atmyb2) that contains a sequence that encodes a transcription factor, which is a homolog of MYB, was cloned from a cDNA library prepared from dehydrated Arabidopsis rosette plants. A gene (Atmyb2) corresponding to the Atmyb2 cDNA was also cloned and its nucleotide sequence was determined. RNA gel blot analysis showed that the Atmyb2 mRNA was induced by dehydration and disappeared upon rehydration. The Atmyb2 mRNA also accumulated upon salt stress and with the onset of treatment with abscisic acid. A beta-glucuronidase reporter gene driven by the Atmyb2 promoter was induced by dehydration and salt stress in transgenic Arabidopsis plants. These observations indicate that Atmyb2 is responsive to dehydration at the transcriptional level. The putative protein (ATMYB2) encoded by Atmyb2 has 274 amino acids, a molecular mass of 32 kD, and a putative DNA binding domain that shows considerable homology to plant MYB-related proteins, such as maize C1. A fusion protein that included ATMYB2 was expressed in Escherichia coli, and it bound specifically to oligonucleotides that contained a consensus MYB recognition sequence (TAACTG), such as is found in the simian virus 40 enhancer and the maize bronze-1 promoter. Binding was sequence specific, as indicated by a gel mobility shift experiment. These results suggest that a MYB-related transcription factor is involved in the regulation of genes that are responsive to water stress in Arabidopsis.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The human and mouse proteins cause extensive morphological changes to human monocytes with an associated up-regulation of major histocompatibility complex class II antigens and the low-affinity receptor for immunoglobulin E (Fc epsilon RII or CD23).
Abstract: We have isolated the human cDNA homologue of a mouse helper T-cell-specific cDNA sequence, called P600, from an activated human T-cell cDNA library. The human cDNA encodes a secreted, mainly unglycosylated, protein with a relative molecular mass of approximately 10,000. We show that the human and mouse proteins cause extensive morphological changes to human monocytes with an associated up-regulation of major histocompatibility complex class II antigens and the low-affinity receptor for immunoglobulin E (Fc epsilon RII or CD23). In addition, they stimulate proliferation of human B cells that have been activated by anti-IgM antibodies or by anti-CD40 monoclonal antibodies presented by a mouse Ltk- cell line transfected with CDw32. Furthermore, the human protein induced considerable levels of IgM and IgG, but no IgA production, in cultures in which highly purified human surface IgD+ or total B cells were cocultured with an activated CD4+ T-cell clone. Based on these findings, we propose that this immunoregulatory protein be designated interleukin 13.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Unexpectedly, messenger RNA levels of this isoform of NO synthase was more abundant in human skeletal muscle than human brain, indicating a possible novel function of NO in skeletal muscle.


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The purification of E6-AP and the cloning of its corresponding cDNA, which contains a novel open reading frame encoding 865 amino acids, is reported, suggesting a model by which E6 deregulates cell growth control by the elimination of the p53 tumor suppressor protein.
Abstract: The E6 oncoproteins of the cancer-associated or high-risk human papillomaviruses (HPVs) target the cellular p53 protein. The association of E6 with p53 leads to the specific ubiquitination and degradation of p53 in vitro, suggesting a model by which E6 deregulates cell growth control by the elimination of the p53 tumor suppressor protein. Complex formation between E6 and p53 requires an additional cellular factor, designated E6-AP (E6-associated protein), which has a native and subunit molecular mass of approximately 100 kDa. Here we report the purification of E6-AP and the cloning of its corresponding cDNA, which contains a novel open reading frame encoding 865 amino acids. E6-AP, translated in vitro, has the following properties: (i) it associates with wild-type p53 in the presence of the HPV16 E6 protein and simultaneously stimulates the association of E6 with p53, (ii) it associates with the high-risk HPV16 and HPV18 E6 proteins in the absence of p53, and (iii) it induces the E6- and ubiquitin-dependent degradation of p53 in vitro.

Journal Article
TL;DR: The molecular cloning of a full-length 2.65-kilobase complementary DNA encoding the PSM antigen from a human LNCaP complementary DNA library is reported by polymerase chain reaction using degenerate oligonucleotide primers.
Abstract: Recently, a novel M(r) 100,000 prostate-specific membrane glycoprotein (PSM) has been detected by the prostate-specific monoclonal antibody 7E11-C5, raised against the human prostatic carcinoma cell line LNCaP. The PSM antigen is expressed exclusively by normal and neoplastic prostate cells and metastases. We now report the molecular cloning of a full-length 2.65-kilobase complementary DNA encoding the PSM antigen from a human LNCaP complementary DNA library by polymerase chain reaction using degenerate oligonucleotide primers. Analysis of the complementary DNA sequence has revealed that a portion of the coding region, from nucleotide 1250 to 1700, has 54% homology to the human transferrin receptor mRNA. The deduced polypeptide has a putative transmembrane domain enabling the delineation of intra- and extracellular portions of this antigen. In contrast to prostate-specific antigen and prostatic acid phosphatase which are secreted proteins, PSM as an integral membrane protein may prove to be effective as a target for imaging and cytotoxic targeting modalities.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Results provide further support for a role of this protein in mediating ARE-directed mRNA degradation, and it is demonstrated that the 37- and 40-kDa polypeptides are immunologically cross-reactive and that both polypePTides are phosphorylated and can be found in a complex(s) with other polyPEptides.
Abstract: The degradation of some proto-oncogene and lymphokine mRNAs is controlled in part by an AU-rich element (ARE) in the 3' untranslated region. It was shown previously (G. Brewer, Mol. Cell. Biol. 11:2460-2466, 1991) that two polypeptides (37 and 40 kDa) copurified with fractions of a 130,000 x g postribosomal supernatant (S130) from K562 cells that selectively accelerated degradation of c-myc mRNA in a cell-free decay system. These polypeptides bound specifically to the c-myc and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor 3' UTRs, suggesting they are in part responsible for selective mRNA degradation. In the present work, we have purified the RNA-binding component of this mRNA degradation activity, which we refer to as AUF1. Using antisera specific for these polypeptides, we demonstrate that the 37- and 40-kDa polypeptides are immunologically cross-reactive and that both polypeptides are phosphorylated and can be found in a complex(s) with other polypeptides. Immunologically related polypeptides are found in both the nucleus and the cytoplasm. The antibodies were also used to clone a cDNA for the 37-kDa polypeptide. This cDNA contains an open reading frame predicted to produce a protein with several features, including two RNA recognition motifs and domains that potentially mediate protein-protein interactions. These results provide further support for a role of this protein in mediating ARE-directed mRNA degradation.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The identity of the human platelet 5‐HT uptake site and the brain 5‐ HT transporter indicates that both proteins are encoded by the same single‐copy gene, which has been assigned to the human chromosome 17.
Abstract: A cDNA encoding the human platelet serotonin (5-HT) uptake site was isolated and sequenced using the PCR. The cDNA represents a approximately 3.1-kb mRNA transcript and contains an open reading frame encoding a hydrophobic polypeptide of 630 amino acids with 12 membrane-spanning segments, a calculated molecular mass of 70,320 Da, and an estimated isoelectrical point of 5.84. The human platelet 5-HT uptake site is identical with the human brain 5-HT transporter and approximately 92% homologous to the rat protein. Hydropathicity analysis indicates 12 membrane-spanning segments with two putative glycosylation sites within the second extracellular loop. The human platelet 5-HT uptake site contains two intraplasmatic consensus phosphorylation sites for cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase recognition located in the cytoplasmatic N-terminal region and three potential protein kinase C phosphorylation sites. The identity of the human platelet 5-HT uptake site and the brain 5-HT transporter indicates that both proteins are encoded by the same single-copy gene, which has been assigned to the human chromosome 17. Our findings are likely to facilitate molecular pharmacologic and genetic investigations of the 5-HT transporter in psychiatric disorders.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A cDNA encoding a novel member of the G‐protein‐coupled receptor (GCR) superfamily, an ATP receptor, has been isolated from an embryonic chick whole brain cDNA library by hybridization screening.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The results indicate that the PPAR is present in humans in a form that is functional and can trans-activate response elements derived from two different genes, the rat ACO and the rabbit CYP4A6.
Abstract: The human peroxisome proliferator activated receptor (hPPAR) was cloned from a human liver cDNA library. The cDNA exhibited 85% and 91% DNA and deduced amino acid sequence identity with mouse PPAR (mPPAR), respectively. The hPPAR gene was mapped on human chromosome 22 slightly telomeric to a linkage group of six genes and genetic markers that are located in the general region 22q12-q13.1. Cotransfection assays of mouse Hepa 1 cells were used to roughly compare the ability of hPPAR- and mPPAR-expressed cDNAs to trans-activate the acyl CoA oxidase (ACO) PPAR response element located 5' upstream to the minimal thymidine kinase promoter driving the expression of the chloramphenicol acetyl transferase (CAT) reporter gene. Both receptors elicited a response with the prototypical peroxisome proliferators nafenopin, clofibrate, and WY-14,643. Moreover, using cotransfection assays in which the CAT reporter plasmid contained the CYP4 A6 gene response element rather than the ACO element, it was shown that hPPAR is capable of very efficiently trans-activating a second PPAR response element. These results indicate that the PPAR is present in humans in a form that is functional and can trans-activate response elements derived from two different genes, the rat ACO and the rabbit CYP4A6.

Book ChapterDOI
TL;DR: Thermal rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE) is a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique through which previously unobtained 3' and 5' ends of a cDNA can be amplified starting with the knowledge of a small stretch of sequence from within an internal region of the cDNA.
Abstract: Publisher Summary The generation of a full-length complementary DNA (cDNA) can represent the most challenging part of a cloning project, particularly with respect to obtaining the 5' end of the cDNA. The initial step––reverse transcription of messenger RNA (mRNA)—is also the most critical one, and many variations on it is described to maximize the likelihood of obtaining fully extended cDNA. Thermal rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE) is a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique through which previously unobtained 3' and 5' ends of a cDNA can be amplified starting with the knowledge of a small stretch of sequence from within an internal region of the cDNA. This technique provides an alternative to constructing and screening conventional libraries to obtain the remainder of the sequence for a partially cloned cDNA. Partial cDNAs are generated using PCR to amplify the copies of the region between a single point in a mRNA transcript and its 3' or 5' end. To use the RACE protocol, a short, internal stretch of sequence must already be known from the mRNA of interest.

Journal ArticleDOI
24 Jun 1993-Nature
TL;DR: A highly sensitive differential complementary DNA cloning procedure is used to identify genes that may participate in long-term plasticity, suggesting that strong neuronal activation leads to de novo synthesis of vesicular and other synaptic components.
Abstract: PLASTICITY is a property of the nervous system that allows it to modify its response to an altered input. This capacity for change suggests that there are molecular mechanisms in neurons that can couple stimuli to long-term alterations in phenotype1–3. Neuronal excitation elicits rapid transcriptional activation of several immediate–early genes4, for example c-fos, c-jun and zif268. Many immediate–early genes encode transcription factors that control expression of downstream genes whose products are believed to bring about long-term plastic changes3,4. Here we use a highly sensitive differential complementary DNA cloning procedure to identify genes that may participate in long-term plasticity. We cloned 52 cDNAs of genes induced by the glutamate analogue kainate in the hippocampus dentate gyrus. The number of these candidate plasticity-related genes (CPGs) is estimated to be 500–1,000. One of the cloned CPGs (16C8), encoding a protease inhibitor, is induced by a stimulus producing long-term potentiation and during dentate gyrus development; a second, cpgl, is dependent on activation of the NMDA (N-methyl-D-aspartate) receptor for induction and encodes a new small, dentate-gyrus-specific protein. Seventeen of the cloned CPGs encode known proteins, including six suggesting that strong neuronal activation leads to de novo synthesis of vesicular and other synaptic components.

Journal ArticleDOI
01 Nov 1993-Neuron
TL;DR: A rat cDNA clone that displays 75% amino acid homology with the mouse delta and rat kappa opioid receptors is isolated and it is concluded that pRMuR-12 encodes a mu opioid receptor.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The putative copper and ATP-binding domains of the human Menkes disease gene were used as probes to screen a human liver cDNA library at reduced stringency and suggest that this cDNA is a candidate gene for Wilson disease and that the protein encoded at this locus is a member of the P-type ATPase family.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: It is proposed that CBF beta is a non-DNA-binding subunit of CBF and does not contact DNA directly and as a result decrease the rate of dissociation of the CBF protein-DNA complex.
Abstract: Moloney murine leukemia virus causes thymic leukemias when injected into newborn mice. A major determinant of the thymic disease specificity of Moloney virus genetically maps to the conserved viral core motif in the Moloney virus enhancer. Point mutations introduced into the core site significantly shifted the disease specificity of the Moloney virus from thymic leukemia to erythroid leukemia (N.A. Speck, B. Renjifo, E. Golemis, T.N. Fredrickson, J.W. Hartley, and N. Hopkins, Genes Dev. 4:233-242, 1990). We previously reported the purification of core-binding factors (CBF) from calf thymus nuclei (S. Wang and N.A. Speck, Mol. Cell. Biol. 12:89-102, 1992). CBF binds to core sites in murine leukemia virus and T-cell receptor enhancers. Affinity-purified CBF contains multiple polypeptides. In this study, we sequenced five tryptic peptides from two of the bovine CBF proteins and isolated three cDNA clones from a mouse thymus cDNA library encoding three of the tryptic peptides from the bovine proteins. The cDNA clones, which we call CBF beta p22.0, CBF beta p21.5, and CBF beta p17.6, encode three highly related but distinct proteins with deduced molecular sizes of 22.0, 21.5, and 17.6 kDa that appear to be translated from multiply spliced mRNAs transcribed from the same gene. CBF beta p22.0, CBF beta p21.5, and CBF beta p17.6 do not by themselves bind the core site. However, CBF beta p22.0 and CBF beta p21.5 form a complex with DNA-binding CBF alpha subunits and as a result decrease the rate of dissociation of the CBF protein-DNA complex. Association of the CBF beta subunits does not extend the phosphate contacts in the binding site. We propose that CBF beta is a non-DNA-binding subunit of CBF and does not contact DNA directly.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The isolation and characterization of overlapping cDNA clones which code for the MG2 protein core are described and a proposed name is proposed for this gene MUC7 in accordance with the mucin genes cloned to date named MUC1-MUC6.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Restricted gene expression in organs and the unique secretion nature of the protein suggest that FGF-9 plays a physiological role which differs from those of well-characterized acidic FGF and basic FGF.
Abstract: Glia-activating factor (GAF) is a novel heparin-binding growth factor purified from the culture supernatant of a human glioma cell line. It shows a spectrum of activity slightly different from those of other known growth factors. We have isolated the cDNA which encodes human GAF. A homology search revealed that GAF would be the ninth member of the FGF family, and we therefore call it FGF-9. The human FGF-9 cDNA cloned by using oligonucleotide probes encoded a polypeptide consisting of 208 amino acids. Sequence similarity to other members of the FGF family was estimated to be around 30%. Two cysteine residues and other consensus sequences in family members were also well conserved in the FGF-9 sequence. FGF-9 was found to have no typical signal sequence in its N terminus like those in acidic FGF and basic FGF. Acidic FGF and basic FGF are known not to be secreted from cells in a conventional manner. However, FGF-9 was found to be secreted from cells after synthesis despite its lack of a typical signal sequence. It could be detected exclusively in the culture medium of cDNA-transfected COS cells. The amino acid sequence of proteins purified from culture supernatant of the CHO cell line, which was cDNA transfected and selected as a high producer of FGF-9, showed that no peptides were cleaved from the N terminus except the initiation methionine. The rat FGF-9 cDNA was also cloned, and the structural analysis indicated that the PGF-9 gene is highly conserved. Expression of the FGF-9 gene could be detected in the brain and kidney of the adult rat. Restricted gene expression in organs and the unique secretion nature of the protein suggest that FGF-9 plays a physiological role which differs from those of well-characterized acidic FGF and basic FGF.