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Structure and expression of two highly related genes encoding SCM-1/human lymphotactin.

SCM-1/lymphotactin is a chemokine-like molecule produced selectively, if not exclusively, by activated CD8+ T cells. Here we report that there are two highly homologous SCM-1 genes, which we designate as SCM-1alpha and SCM-1beta. Both genes have three exons and two introns. The 1st intron of SCM-1alpha contains a pseudogene of the ribosomal large subunit L7a. In SCM-1beta, a 1.5-kb region including about a quarter of the L7a pseudogene is deleted from the 1st intron. Otherwise, the two genes are highly homologous including the 5' and 3' flanking regions. Both genes were mapped to human chromosome 1q23. The two genes were similarly induced in peripheral blood mononuclear cells by mitogenic stimulation. Primer extension and RNase protection revealed several transcription initiation sites. The biological activities of SCM-1alpha and SCM-1beta, which have two amino acid differences at positions 7 and 8 in the mature proteins, remain to be compared.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Retropseudogenes for human chromosomal protein HMG-17.

The human genome contains multiple copies of sequences homologous to the cDNA coding for non-histone chromosomal protein HMG-17. To study the mechanism of generation and dispersion of the HMG-17 multigene family a human genomic library was screened and 70 clones isolated and studied by Southern transfer and restriction site analysis. The results suggest that most of the clones contain unique sequences. Sequence analysis of two genomic clones indicates that they contain elements typical of processed retropseudogenes. Even though both sequences contained open reading frames the sequences lacked introns, were flanked by short, direct repeats and lacked elements associated with functional genes. The sequences of the two pseudogenes were 85% homologous to each other and each was 90% homologous to the human cDNA. Based on the sequence difference in the open reading frame between the pseudogenes and the cDNA it can be estimated that the sequences arose approximately ten million years ago from a common precursor. The present paper, which is the first study on genes coding for this nucleosomal binding protein, indicates that the HMG-17 multigene family is the largest known human retropseudogene family.

Base Sequence↗

Identification of a long stretch of homopurine.homopyrimidine sequence in a cluster of retroposons in the human genome.

A cluster of nine retroposons of four different types in a 6221 base EcoRI DNA fragment was isolated from a human fetal liver genomic library using a human nucleophosmin (B23) cDNA as a probe. These retroposons are: (1) a solitary HERV-K long terminal repeat upstream from; (2) a nucleophosmin processed pseudogene; (3) six Alu repeated sequences interspersed in both directions; and (4) a truncated Kpn repeated sequence integrated by an Alu monomer and the HERV-K long terminal repeat. Sequence analysis shows that the nucleophosmin pseudogene contains a long stretch (135 base-pairs) of homopurine.homopyrimidine (Pur.Pyr) sequence. S1 and P1 nuclease digestion indicated that this sequence was able to adopt a non-B-DNA triplex structure under either acidic or neutral conditions. This finding is the first example of the association of a potential DNA triplex structure with a cluster of retroposons.

Base Sequence↗

Fetal recruitment of anthropoid gamma-globin genes. Findings from phylogenetic analyses involving the 5'-flanking sequences of the psi gamma 1 globin gene of spider monkey Ateles geoffroyi.

We determined the nucleotide sequence of a 2.5 kb DNA fragment (1 kb is 10(3) base-pairs) that includes exon 1, intron 1 and about 1.4 kb of 5'-flanking DNA of the spider monkey gamma 1-globin pseudogene locus and compared this sequence to its homologous from other primates and rabbit. This region of the gamma 1 locus of spider monkey still retains conserved regulatory elements, suggesting that it became a pseudogene late in New World monkey phylogeny. In the 250 base-pair region immediately 5' from the transcription start site where many known regulatory elements are located, a higher rate of nucleotide substitutions occurred in the ancestral anthropoid (human, ape and monkey) lineage than in the prosimian (galago) lineage, as was also the case for non-synonymous substitutions in the coding region. The opposite pattern was observed for most other non-coding regions and for synonymous substitutions. These substitution patterns correlate with the embryonic-to-fetal transformation of the gamma-globin genes of the ancestral anthropoids. Analysis of the 5'-flanking sequences suggests that 11 gene conversion events have occurred in the anthropoid gamma-gene lineages. In the parts of the 5'-flanking region where no gene conversions have been detected, gamma 2-gene sequences have accumulated more nucleotide changes than gamma 1, which suggests that the gamma 2 gene was the more redundant duplicate that may have accumulated first the nucleotide changes responsible for the anthropoid fetal pattern of gamma-globin gene expression.

Animals↗

RNA-mediated recombination in S. cerevisiae.

The existence of pseudogenes and the observation of intron loss suggest that RNA can serve as an intermediate in recombination. We used a HIS3 reporter gene to show that RNA-mediated recombination occurs in yeast. His3+ prototroph formation required transcription and expression of the retrotransposon Ty. Two RNA-mediated recombination events were detected: homologous recombination between the cDNA and plasmid his3 sequences, resulting in intron loss, and insertion of the cDNA into the chromosome in the absence of HIS3 homology. The chromosomal His3+ prototrophs showed many hallmarks of naturally occurring pseudogenes. They integrated at novel sites in the chromosome, lacked introns, and possessed poly(A) tracts. Additionally, their 5' ends corresponded with the site of initiation of the GAL1 transcript.

Base Sequence↗

Molecular analysis of human immunoglobulin V lambda germline genes: subgroups V lambda III and V lambda IV.

Three human immunoglobulin V lambda germline genes have been isolated: two from the V lambda IV subgroup and one from the V lambda III subgroup. The V lambda III gene and one of the V lambda IV genes appear to be functional (each being utilized in at least two expressed V lambda genes), despite deviations from the reported consensus sequences in their promoter TATA-box and recombination signal sequence elements. The other V lambda IV gene is a pseudogene. Of the 20 human V lambda germline genes characterized to date, 45% are pseudogenes or vestigial genes.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

A retropseudogene for non-histone chromosomal protein HMG-1.

Southern analysis of the human genome revealed that there are several sequences with homology to the nonhistone chromosomal protein HMG-1. The majority of the HMG-1 sequences are intronless as suggested from the polymerase chain reaction of HeLa DNA. Sequencing of a clone from a human placenta genomic library revealed that the clone was intronless and displayed 99% homology to the human HMG-1 cDNA. The 5' regulatory motif, CCAAT, is present in the clone but there is no TATA-box. Most of the differences between the HMG-1 cDNA sequence and the clone involve point mutations with no interruption of the reading frame. The sequence is flanked at 5' and 3' ends by a 15 nucleotide long direct repeat suggesting that the clone is a processed HMG-1 retropseudogene. Sequence differences between the reading frames of the HMG-1 pseudogene and HMG-1 cDNA indicated that the pseudogene arose relatively late in evolution, approximately one million years ago. The present paper is the first study on a genomic sequence related to HMG-1 genes.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Structure of a cluster of mouse histone genes.

The structure of a 25 kilobase region of mouse DNA containing 6 functional histone genes and an H2a pseudogene has been determined. The sequences and levels of expression of the H3 and H2b gene as well as the sequence of the H2a pseudogene have been determined.

Animals↗

The beta-tubulin gene family of Arabidopsis thaliana: preferential accumulation of the beta 1 transcript in roots.

The genome of Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh. was shown to contain a beta-tubulin gene family consisting of at least seven distinct genes and/or pseudogenes. Genomic clones of five different beta-tubulin genes and/or pseudogenes have been isolated and partially characterized. The complete nucleotide sequence of one A. thaliana beta-tubulin gene, designated beta 1, has been determined. A comparison of the predicted amino acid sequence of the A. thaliana beta 1-tubulin with the predicted sequences of beta-tubulins of animals and protists indicated that this plant beta-tubulin shows a high degree of homology with other beta-tubulins. However, the beta 1-tubulin contains a novel single amino acid insertion at position 41. The A. thaliana beta 1-tubulin gene is transcribed, as shown by RNA blot hybridization and S1 nuclease analyses. A 3'-noncoding gene-specific probe was used to examine the expression of the beta 1-tubulin gene in leaves, roots, and flowers by blot hybridization analyses of total RNA isolated from these tissues. The results showed that the transcript of the beta 1 gene accumulates predominantly in roots, with low levels of transcript in flowers, and barely detectable levels of transcript in leaves. A second genomic clone was shown to contain two essentially identical beta-tubulin coding sequences in direct tandem orientation and separated by 1 kb.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Characterization of the human lipocortin-2-encoding multigene family: its structure suggests the existence of a short amino acid unit undergoing duplication.

Human genomic clones of the gene encoding lipocortin (LIP) 2 (p36) and of three pseudogenes have been isolated and characterized. The LIP2 gene is at least 40 kb long and consists of 13 exons. The three pseudogenes present typical features of retroposons and, together with the gene, probably represent the entire LIP2 multigene family. Chromosomal assignment of the four loci is proposed. The hypothesis that an ancestral unit coding for 15 to 20 amino acids may have been involved in the evolution of the gene is discussed.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Characterization of two novel human retropseudogenes related to the calmodulin-encoding gene, CaMII.

Two human genomic clones (lambda hg22 and lambda hg29), containing two novel calmodulin (CaM) retropseudogenes, were isolated and characterized. The two pseudogenes show high similarity with the human CaMII cDNA, hCE1 [SenGupta et al., J. Biol. Chem. 262 (1987) 16663-16670] and the CaMII-type retropseudogene, hCE2 (CaMII-psi 1) [SenGupta et al., Nucleic Acids Res. 17 (1989) 2868]. One of them, in clone lambda hg22 (CaMII-psi 2), shows all the characteristics of a processed pseudogene. In clone lambda hg29 (CaMII-psi 3), however, an Alu repetitive sequence was detected immediately upstream from the ancestral 5'-untranslated region. Downstream from the truncated 3'-untranslated region, three additional copies of Alu repetitive sequences flanking about 750 nucleotides of unknown origin were found. Such a processed retropseudogene flanked by multiple Alu repeats may be a target for further recombination events. The three retropseudogenes CaMII-psi 1, CaMII-psi 2 and CaMII-psi 3 are estimated to be about 49, 21 and 25 million years old, respectively.

Animals↗

Diagnosis of micrometastases by the amplification of tissue-specific genes.

Micrometastases of solid tumors are most commonly detected by immunocytochemistry using monoclonal antibodies directed against tissue-specific gene products like cytokeratin-18 (CK-18) and the carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA). While CK-18 is a marker for epithelia in general, CEA is mainly employed in the detection of gastrointestinal and breast carcinomas. To improve the sensitivity and specificity of micrometastasis detection, we planned to establish polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays for both markers. Here we provide strong evidence for the existence of a CK-18 pseudogene, since specific amplification (i) was readily obtained from healthy bone marrow donors, (ii) did not require reverse transcription of CK-18 mRNA and (iii) was not abolished by RNase treatment. Using a CK-18-specific probe, Southern blot analyses revealed identical-size fragments for both genomic DNA and a CK-18 cDNA after digestion with appropriate restriction enzymes. On the other hand, the amplification of CEA mRNA (i) was never observed in bone marrow samples of healthy donors or patients without solid tumors, (ii) required intact mRNA and the reverse transcriptase reaction, and (iii) could not be obtained after RNase treatment. In reconstitution experiments, single CEA-expressing tumor cells were reliably detected among 2 x 10(7) normal bone marrow cells. We conclude that, due to the presence of pseudogene(s), PCR-based detection systems are not readily suitable for CK-18, while the CEA mRNA amplification should provide a sensitive and specific test for the presence of ectopic, and hence presumed malignant, CEA-expressing cells in body fluids.

Base Sequence↗

Detection of a functional promoter/enhancer in an intron-less human gene encoding a glutamine synthetase-like enzyme.

A human genomic clone, psi GS, containing an intron-less glutamine synthetase (GS)-encoding pseudogene, was isolated by screening a human library. A sequence of 3004 bp, containing the GS coding region and both the 5' and 3' flanking sequences, was identified that exhibits all the characteristics of a processed pseudogene. The coding region shows 93% identity with the human GS cDNA (hGS) sequence and contains two frame-shifts and two termination codons. The coding sequence is flanked by a 9-bp AT repeat and a putative polyadenylation site, AATAAA, at the 3' end. Primer extension analysis and S1 nuclease mapping showed a transcription start point (tsp) 62 bp upstream from the start codon indicating a shorter untranslated region than hGS. Transfection of HeLa cells with cat constructs containing portions of the 5' flanking sequence showed the presence of a functional promoter/enhancer within 200 bp of the tsp, independent of its orientation.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Characterization of 5S rRNA genes from mouse.

In order to characterize the transcriptional regulation of the 5S rRNA genes we have isolated a bona fide gene and a pseudogene from mouse cells. These 5S rRNA genes contain a 12-bp sequence designated as the D-box, located in position -33 to -22 bp, and two Sp1-binding sites in the 5'-flanking region. The D-box is conserved in human and hamster 5S rRNA genes although in slightly different upstream positions. The bona fide mouse 5S rRNA gene was transcribed in a HeLa S-100 extract. The transcriptional activity of this gene was only 50% of that of the human gene, indicating the involvement of species-specific transcription factors and/or polymerases. The pseudogene which contains the D-box, but with position +25 to +35 bp deleted, showed no transcriptional activity. Deletion of the D-box in the 5'-flanking sequence abolished transcriptional activity, indicating that this conserved sequence is of importance for gene expression.

Animals↗

Characterization of the gene encoding the human transcriptional elongation factor TFIIS.

The transcriptional elongation factor TFIIS causes stimulation of RNA polymerase II elongation and readthrough of some of the elongation blocks. We present cloning and sequence characterization of the human TFIIS gene and a pseudogene. The intron-less organization of both of these genes indicates that previously identified cDNAs which suggested the presence of an intron were the products of cloning artifacts. The gene is organized in an uninterrupted ORF which codes for 301 amino acids, whereas the pseudogene lacks an ORF able to code for a full-length protein. The potential promoter for the gene has two putative GC-box-type consensus sequences, two CCAAT-box consensus sequences, and is bounded by a human Alu sequence. Two potential transcriptional termination signal sequences downstream from the consensus polyadenylation signal are proposed.

Base Sequence↗

Characterization of two members (ACS1 and ACS3) of the 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate synthase gene family of Arabidopsis thaliana.

The nucleotide sequences of two highly homologous 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate (ACC) synthase (ACS; EC 4.4.1.14)-encoding genes, ACS1 and ACS3, of Arabidopsis thaliana (At) have been determined. The sequence analysis shows that ACS3 is a pseudogene representing a truncated version of ACS1. The missing region of ACS3 corresponding to the fourth exon of ACS1 has been shown by Southern analysis to be absent in the At genome. The chromosomal locations of the five members of the At ACS multigene family have been determined. The results show that each family member resides on a different chromosome. This observation suggests that the ACS3 pseudogene originated by a partial inter-chromosomal gene duplication. The ACS1 polypeptide contains all the conserved and characteristic domains found in the ACC synthase isoenzymes from various plant species, but is unable to express ACS activity in Escherichia coli and yeast. The predicted amino-acid sequence of ACS1 is missing the highly conserved tripeptide, Thr-Asn-Pro (TNP), between Ile204 and Ser205. Introduction of TNP into ACS1 restores the ACS activity, whereas its removal from the enzymatically active ACS2 results in a loss of activity. The results suggest that TNP is crucial for expression of ACS activity in E. coli.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Structure and chromosomal location of the mouse medium-chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase-encoding gene and its promoter.

Medium-chain acyl-coenzyme A dehydrogenase (MCAD; mouse gene Acadm; human gene ACADM) catalyzes the initial step of fatty acid beta-oxidation in mitochondria. Inherited MCAD deficiency is an autosomal recessive disorder that occurs at high frequency in humans and is associated with considerable morbidity and mortality. We have cloned and characterized mouse Acadm which spans approximately 25 kb and contains 12 exons. The promoter region does not contain TATA or CAAT boxes and is G + C-rich (60%) within 200 bp of the cap site. A CpG island extends from 5' of the transcription start point into intron 1. The 5' regulatory region and a portion of intron 1 contain several Sp1 consensus sites and three regions containing hexamer DNA sequences that match the binding consensus for steroid/thyroid nuclear receptors. These putative nuclear receptor response elements (NRRE) share DNA sequence homology and electrophoretic mobility shift characteristics with known NRRE in the human ACADM promoter [Carter et al., J. Biol. Chem. 268 (1993) 13805-13810]. We have mapped mouse Acadm to the distal end of chromosome 3. Sequences previously localized to chromosome 8 are shown to be a pseudogene, and an additional pseudogene was identified on chromosome 11.

Acyl-CoA Dehydrogenase↗

Sequencing and expression of the human ALDH8 encoding a new member of the aldehyde dehydrogenase family.

The human aldehyde dehydrogenase gene (ALDH) family is characterized by two major conserved DNA sequences encoding residues which are possibly involved in the catalytic function and the maintenance of the functional conformation of the ALDH enzyme. This property is the basis for synthesizing the degenerate primers to clone several cDNAs of the ALDH isozymes. In this report, we describe the cDNA sequence and the expression of a new member of this family, ALDH8. The human ALDH8 gene was identified during the process of the screening for the human ALDH7 genomic clones. Overlapping ALDH8 cDNA clones were isolated by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification of human salivary gland total RNA or lambda gt11 cDNA library. When the ALDH8 cDNA sequence was aligned with that of the ALDH7 which encodes a polypeptide chain of 468 amino acid (aa) residues, it was found that a termination codon (TGA) is placed in frame at the ALDH8 sequence corresponding to the codon GCG for the seventeenth aa position of the ALDH7. Therefore, the human ALDH8 gene is a potential nonprocessed pseudogene in the ALDH multigene family which has no other pseudogenes reported so far. Alternatively, the ALDH8 gene is a functional gene if the premature stop codon is suppressed, or if the first downstream in-frame ATG serves as the initiator codon. This longest putative open reading frame (ORF) encodes a polypeptide chain of 385 aa residues, includes the two ALDH conserved regions, and demonstrates 86% identity with the corresponding ORF region of the human ALDH7. The expression of the ALDH8 transcripts is restricted to the salivary gland among the human tissues examined.

Aldehyde Dehydrogenase↗