ALTERNATIVE SPLICING OF THE SEX DETERMINATION GENE TRANSFORMER-2 IS SEX-SPECIFIC IN THE GERM LINE BUT NOT IN THE SOMA
ALTERNATIVE SPLICING OF THE SEX DETERMINATION GENE TRANSFORMER-2 IS SEX-SPECIFIC IN THE GERM LINE BUT NOT IN THE SOMA
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DOI：
10.1101/gad.4.5.789
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发表时间：
1990-05-01
影响因子：
10.5
通讯作者：
BAKER, BS
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
MATTOX, W;PALMER, MJ;BAKER, BS
黑腹果蝇（Drosophilamelanogaster）的Transformer-2（tra-2）基因在雌性索马的性分化和雄性生殖系的精子发生中起着重要作用。在雌性索马中，tra-2与性别决定调控级联中的其他基因一起作用，以控制来自doubletex基因的转录物的性别特异性选择性剪接。在这里，我们确定是否有任何性别特异性的tra-2产物表达，可能占这些性别特异性活动。tra-2基因和10个tra-2 cDNA克隆的序列分析加上核酸酶保护分析揭示了多种选择性剪接的tra-2 mRNA，每种mRNA编码四种不同但重叠的多肽之一。三个编码的多肽含有核糖核蛋白的共识序列和精氨酸/丝氨酸丰富的地区，这表明这些产品在RNA剪接的直接作用。我们发现，虽然两个转录表达男性特异性的生殖细胞系中，在索马中表达的tra-2转录是不具有性别特异性。tra-2-lacZ融合基因产物在两种性别中的翻译表明tra-2在体细胞组织中的雌性特异性功能并不归因于翻译机制。我们认为，tra-2活性在体细胞组织中的调节，通过翻译后的性别特异性的相互作用与tra基因的产品，而不是通过表达的女性特异性tra-2多肽。
The transformer-2 (tra-2) gene of Drosophila melanogaster plays essential roles in both sexual differentiation in the female soma and spermatogenesis in the male germ line. In the female soma, tra-2 is known to act with other genes in the sex determination regulatory cascade to control the sex-specific alternative splicing of transcripts from the doublesex gene. Here, we determine whether or not any sex-specific tra-2 products are expressed that may account for either of these sex-specific activities. Sequence analysis of the tra-2 gene and 10 tra-2 cDNA clones coupled with nuclease protection analysis reveals a variety of alternatively spliced tra-2 mRNAs that each encode one of four distinct but overlapping polypeptides. Three of the encoded polypeptides contain both a ribonucleoprotein consensus sequence and arginine/serine-rich regions, suggesting a direct role for these products in RNA splicing. We show that although two transcripts are expressed male specifically in the germ line, the tra-2 transcripts expressed in the soma are not sex-specific. The translation of products from a tra-2-lacZ fusion gene in both sexes suggests that the female-specific functioning of tra-2 in somatic tissues is not attributable to a translational mechanism. We suggest that tra-2 activity in somatic tissues is regulated through a post-translational sex-specific interaction with the product of the tra gene rather than through the expression of a female-specific tra-2 polypeptide.