title: A promoter within intron 35 of the human C4A gene initiates abundant adrenal-specific transcription of a 1 kb RNA: location of a cryptic CYP21 promoter element?
abstract: Complement component C4 is encoded by two nearly identical genes, C4A and C4B, that encode a C4 precursor that is proteolytically cleaved into the alpha, beta and gamma subunits of the mature protein. C4 is expressed primarily in liver and to a much lesser extent in immune cells. We have identified a unique 1 kb RNA transcript, termed Z, that arises from a cryptic promoter lying in the intron between exons 35 and 36 of the C4 gene. Primer extension, RNase protection, and 5' RACE experiments locate the cap site in intron 35, 55 bases upstream from exon 36. Northern blotting and RNase protection assays show that expression of this 1 kb Z RNA transcript is confined to the adrenal gland. Z RNA contains the same open reading frame as C4 which predicts a protein of 131 amino acids, but antisera to C4 do not interact with epitopes on this protein when it is synthesized by cell-free translation, hence the presence or absence of a Z protein in vivo could not be determined. Transfection of Z promoter/reporter constructs into human adrenal NCI-H295 cells shows that most if not all of the sequences required for high-level adrenal expression lie within 235 bases upstream from the cap site, but that this region is inactive when transfected into COS-1, JEG-3 and Hep-G2 cells, suggesting it contains an adrenal-specific element. The 222 bases upstream from the cap site are 75% identical in the human C4A and mouse Slp genes, and contain a potential binding site for steroidogenic factor 1 (SF-1), an orphan zinc-finger nuclear receptor. We propose that this region, like a nearby region in the mouse genome, functions as an upstream element of the P450c21 promoter, and may be a component of an adrenal-specific locus-control region.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Francisco 94143-0978, USA.
authors.forename: M K
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Tee
authors.forename: G O
authors.initials: GO
authors.lastname: Babalola
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Aza-Blanc
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Speek
authors.forename: S E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Gitelman
authors.forename: W L
authors.initials: WL
authors.lastname: Miller
mesh_terms: D000311:Adrenal Glands / Q000196:embryology / Q000378:metabolism*; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D002460:Cell Line; D015934:Complement C4a / Q000235:genetics*; D004247:DNA; D006801:Humans; D007438:Introns; D051379:Mice; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D014176:Protein Biosynthesis; D012313:RNA / Q000235:genetics; D013255:Steroid 21-Hydroxylase / Q000235:genetics*; D014158:Transcription, Genetic
chemical_list: D012313:RNA; D015934:Complement C4a; D004247:DNA; D013255:Steroid 21-Hydroxylase