An ultra-high sulfur keratin gene is expressed specifically during hair growth.
To study the regulation of the hair cycle in the mouse, we have isolated and characterized a gene for ultra high sulfur keratin that is expressed specifically during the active hair growth cycle. The gene (gUHSK-704Eco) was isolated as a member of a gene cluster on a recombinant phage with a DNA insert of 18 kb that was isolated by screening a murine genomic library at low stringency with a synthetic oligonucleotide derived from a sheep high sulfur keratin gene (Powell, Nucleic Acids Res. 1983 11, 5327). The murine ultra-high sulfur keratin gene has no intervening sequence; the 558 nucleotide of the coding region specify 186 amino acids, of which 70 (37%) are cysteine. A Cys-Cys-Gln-Pro repeat is found 12 times within the coding region. RNA dot blots show that the ultra-high sulfur keratin gene is expressed during the hair cycle concomitant with the anterior-posterior temporal pattern of the normal murine hair cycle.
McNab
A R
AR
Molecular Biology Research, Upjohn Company, Kalamazoo, Michigan 49001.
Wood
L
L
Theriault
N
N
Gierman
T
T
Vogeli
G
G
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D005796:Genes; D006197:Hair / Q000254:growth & development*; D007633:Keratins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D051379:Mice; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism; D012867:Skin / Q000378:metabolism; D013455:Sulfur / Q000378:metabolism*
D012333:RNA, Messenger; D007633:Keratins; D013455:Sulfur