Progenitor Stage-Specific Activity of a cis-Acting Double GATA Motif for Gata1 Gene Expression

GATA1 is a master regulator of erythropoiesis, expression of which is regulated by multiple discrete cis-acting elements. In this study, we examine the activity of a promoter-proximal double GATA (dbGATA) motif, using a Gata1 bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC)-transgenic green fluorescent protein (GFP) reporter (G1BAC-GFP) mouse system. Deletion of the dbGATA motif led to significant reductions in GFP expression in hematopoietic progenitors, while GFP expression was maintained in erythroblasts. Consistently, in mice with a germ line deletion of the dbGATA motif (Gata1^ΔdbGATA mice), GATA1 expression in progenitors was significantly decreased. The suppressed GATA1 expression was associated with a compensatory increase in GATA2 levels in progenitors. When we crossed Gata1^ΔdbGATA mice with Gata2 hypomorphic mutant mice (Gata2^fGN/fGN mice), the Gata1^ΔdbGATA::Gata2^fGN/fGN compound mutant mice succumbed to a significant decrease in the progenitor population, whereas both groups of single mutant mice maintained progenitors and survived to adulthood, indicating the functional redundancy between GATA1 and GATA2 in progenitors. Meanwhile, the effects of the dbGATA site deletion on Gata1 expression were subtle in erythroblasts, which showed increased GATA1 binding and enhanced accumulation of active histone marks around the 1st-intron GATA motif of the ΔdbGATA locus. These results thus reveal a novel role of the dbGATA motif in the maintenance of Gata1 expression in hematopoietic progenitors and a functional compensation between the dbGATA site and the 1st-intron GATA motif in erythroblasts.     

核转录因子Foxp3在小鼠黑色素瘤细胞中的表达

目的:检测小鼠黑色素瘤细胞中核转录因子Foxp3的表达。方法:用TRIzol试剂提取小鼠黑色素瘤细胞RNA,通过实时荧光定量PCR检测小鼠黑色素瘤细胞中Foxp3 mRNA的表达,通过Western印迹和流式细胞术检测小鼠黑色素瘤细胞中Foxp3蛋白的表达,通过免疫荧光检测小鼠黑色素瘤细胞中Foxp3分子的表达。结果:在小鼠黑色素瘤细胞中存在Foxp3的mRNA转录和分子表达,免疫荧光显示Foxp3定位于黑色素瘤细胞的胞核及核周部位。结论:证实了小鼠黑色素瘤细胞表达Foxp3,将为临床黑色素瘤的免疫治疗提供新的靶标和治疗策略。     

Transcription Factor GATA1 Is Dispensable for Mast Cell Differentiation in Adult Mice

Although previous studies have shown that GATA1 is required for mast cell differentiation, the effects of the complete ablation of GATA1 in mast cells have not been examined. Using conditional Gata1 knockout mice (Gata1^−/y), we demonstrate here that the complete ablation of GATA1 has a minimal effect on the number and distribution of peripheral tissue mast cells in adult mice. The Gata1^−/y bone marrow cells were capable of differentiating into mast cells ex vivo. Microarray analyses showed that the repression of GATA1 in bone marrow mast cells (BMMCs) has a small impact on the mast cell-specific gene expression in most cases. Interestingly, however, the expression levels of mast cell tryptases in the mouse chromosome 17A3.3 were uniformly reduced in the GATA1 knockdown cells, and GATA1 was found to bind to a 500-bp region at the 5′ end of this locus. Revealing a sharp contrast to that observed in the Gata1-null BMMCs, GATA2 deficiency resulted in a significant loss of the c-Kit⁺ FcεRIα⁺ mast cell fraction and a reduced expression of several mast cell-specific genes. Collectively, GATA2 plays a more important role than GATA1 in the regulation of most mast cell-specific genes, while GATA1 might play specific roles in mast cell functions.     

Testis-Specific Expression of a Functional Retroposon Encoding Glucose-6-phosphate Dehydrogenase in the Mouse

The X-chromosomal geneglucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase(G6pd) is known to be expressed in most cell types of mammalian species. In the mouse, we have detected a novel gene, designatedG6pd-2,encoding a G6PD isoenzyme.G6pd-2does not contain introns and appears to represent a retroposed gene. This gene is uniquely transcribed in postmeiotic spermatogenic cells in which the X-encodedG6pdgene is not transcribed. Expression of theG6pd-2sequence in a bacterial system showed that the encoded product is an active enzyme. Zymogramic analysis demonstrated that recombinant G6PD-2, but not recombinant G6PD-1 (the X-chromosome-encoded G6PD), formed tetramers under reducing conditions. Under the same conditions, G6PD tetramers were also found in extracts of spermatids and spermatozoa, indicating the presence ofG6pd-2-encoded isoenzyme in these cell types.G6pd-2is one of the very few known expressed retroposons encoding a functional protein, and the presence of this gene is probably related to X chromosome inactivation during spermatogenesis.