title: Expression of platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) and PDGF receptor genes in the developing rat brain.
abstract: Steady-state levels of rat central nervous system (CNS) platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) A- and B-chain mRNAs were measured by a polymerase chain reaction method employing a synthetic gene internal standard, and the rates of transcription of PDGF A- and B-chain genes in CNS were estimated by a nuclear runoff assay. The abundance of PDGF B-chain mRNA was an order of magnitude below that of PDGF A-chain mRNA, while the rate of PDGF B-chain transcription was only slightly below that for the PDGF A-chain gene, indicating that the half-life of PDGF B-chain in CNS is shorter than that of PDGF A-chain mRNA. No developmental alterations in expression of the PDGF A- and B-chain genes were detected. By contrast, Northern blots showed that steady-state levels of mRNAs encoding the two PDGF receptor proteins, alpha and beta, were markedly higher in embryonic day 15 and postnatal day 6 rat brains than in later life. These results suggest that the actions of PDGF on the brain in vivo are regulated not at the level of PDGF A and B-chain gene expression, but rather by changes in the level of expression of PDGF alpha- and beta-receptor genes.
authors.affiliation: Neurology Research, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, PA 19104.
authors.forename: U R
authors.initials: UR
authors.lastname: Reddy
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pleasure
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D015152:Blotting, Northern; D001921:Brain / Q000196:embryology / Q000254:growth & development / Q000502:physiology*; D002467:Cell Nucleus / Q000502:physiology; D015870:Gene Expression; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D005813:Genes, Synthetic; D046911:Macromolecular Substances; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009838:Oligodeoxyribonucleotides; D010982:Platelet-Derived Growth Factor / Q000235:genetics*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface / Q000235:genetics*; D017479:Receptors, Platelet-Derived Growth Factor; D014158:Transcription, Genetic
chemical_list: D046911:Macromolecular Substances; D009838:Oligodeoxyribonucleotides; D010982:Platelet-Derived Growth Factor; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface; D017479:Receptors, Platelet-Derived Growth Factor