title: Functional identification of regulatory elements within the promoter region of platelet-derived growth factor 2.
abstract: Human platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) is composed of two polypeptide chains, PDGF-1 and PDGF-2, the human homolog of the v-sis oncogene. Deregulation of PDGF-2 expression can confer a growth advantage to cells possessing the cognate receptor and, thus, may contribute to the malignant phenotype. We investigated the regulation of PDGF-2 mRNA expression during megakaryocytic differentiation of K562 cells. Induction by 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) led to a greater than 200-fold increase in PDGF-2 transcript levels in these cells. Induction was dependent on protein synthesis and was not enhanced by cycloheximide exposure. In our initial investigation of the PDGF-2 promoter, a minimal promoter region, which included sequences extending only 42 base pairs upstream of the TATA signal, was found to be as efficient as 4 kilobase pairs upstream of the TATA signal in driving expression of a reporter gene in uninduced K562 cells. We also functionally identified different regulatory sequence elements of the PDGF-2 promoter in TPA-induced K562 cells. One region acted as a transcriptional silencer, while another region was necessary for maximal activity of the promoter in megakaryoblasts. This region was shown to bind nuclear factors and was the target for trans-activation in normal and tumor cells. In one tumor cell line, which expressed high PDGF-2 mRNA levels, the presence of the positive regulatory region resulted in a 30-fold increase in promoter activity. However, the ability of the minimal PDGF-2 promoter to drive reporter gene expression in uninduced K562 cells and normal fibroblasts, which contained no detectable PDGF-2 transcripts, implies the existence of other negative control mechanisms beyond the regulation of promoter activity.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Biology, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland 20892.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pech
authors.forename: C D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Rao
authors.forename: K C
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Robbins
authors.forename: S A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Aaronson
mesh_terms: D001483:Base Sequence; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D002872:Chromosome Deletion; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D005809:Genes, Regulator; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010982:Platelet-Derived Growth Factor / Q000235:genetics*; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D020574:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-sis; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics; D013755:Tetradecanoylphorbol Acetate / Q000494:pharmacology; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D010982:Platelet-Derived Growth Factor; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D020574:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-sis; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D014157:Transcription Factors; D013755:Tetradecanoylphorbol Acetate