Expression of Transferrin mRNA in the CNS of Normal and Jimpy Mice |
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Authors: | William P Bartlett Xiao-Su Li James R Connor |
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Institution: | Department of Neuroscience and Anatomy, Pennsylvania State University, Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Hershey 17033. |
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Abstract: | Both the iron mobilization protein transferrin and iron itself are found predominantly in oligodendrocytes in the brain and consequently have been hypothesized to have a role in myelination. This study is designed to begin to understand the mechanism(s) that control the expression of transferrin at the gene level in the nervous system using a hypomyelinating murine mutant (jimpy mouse). With this animal model it is possible to determine if transferrin gene expression in the nervous system is dependent on the presence of a mature oligodendrocytic population. The results demonstrate that normally expression of the transferrin gene increases from postnatal day 5 to 22-25 and then levels off in the adult. In the jimpy mouse, the relative amount of transferrin gene expression is less than that of littermate controls at 5 days of age. Furthermore, transferrin gene expression does not increase with age beyond the level observed at postnatal day 5 in the jimpy mouse. It is concluded from this study that the majority of the transferrin mRNA in the mouse brain is expressed by and/or requires the presence of a mature oligodendrocytic population. |
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Keywords: | Transferrin Iron Oligodendrocytes Jimpy Myelin Hypomyelination |
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