title: Sizing of the human T cell receptor alpha locus and detection of a large deletion in the Molt-4 cell line.
abstract: The human T cell receptor alpha (TCR-alpha) chain gene consists of discontinuous DNA segments encoding multiple variable (V), multiple joining (J), and one constant (C) region. Unlike other immunoglobulin or TCR genes, however, the TCR-alpha locus exhibits an unusual dispersal of J segments that occupy a region of greater than 50 kilobases (kb) upstream of the C region, with the exact size still unknown. We report here the study of the TCR-alpha genetic locus by using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), which permits the separation of large DNA fragments. Analysis of DNA prepared from normal peripheral blood mononuclear cells, human endothelial cells, and a B cell line demonstrates that both V and C sequences are contained within a single 400-kb SfiI restriction fragment. PFGE analysis of the T cell line Molt 4 suggests a greater than 600-kb deletion involving the TCR-alpha gene.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor.
authors.forename: M S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Roth
authors.forename: F S
authors.initials: FS
authors.lastname: Collins
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ginsburg
mesh_terms: D002460:Cell Line; D002872:Chromosome Deletion; D004247:DNA / Q000235:genetics; D004262:DNA Restriction Enzymes; D004587:Electrophoresis, Agar Gel; D005796:Genes; D006801:Humans; D011948:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell / Q000235:genetics*; D016693:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell, alpha-beta; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D011948:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell; D016693:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell, alpha-beta; D004247:DNA; D004262:DNA Restriction Enzymes