title: Characterization and tissue-specific expression of the rat basic fibroblast growth factor antisense mRNA and protein.
abstract: An RNA transcribed from the antisense strand of the FGF-2 gene has been implicated in the regulation of FGF-2 mRNA stability in amphibian oocytes. We have now cloned and characterized a novel 1. 1-kb mRNA (fgf-as) from neonatal rat liver. In non-central nervous system (CNS) tissues the fgf-as RNA is abundantly expressed in a developmentally regulated manner. The FGF-AS cDNA contains a consensus polyadenylylation signal and a long open reading frame (ORF) whose deduced amino acid sequence predicts a 35-kDa protein with homology to the MutT family of nucleotide hydrolases. Western blot analysis with antibodies against the deduced peptide sequence demonstrates that the FGF-AS protein is expressed in a broad range of non-CNS tissue in the postnatal period. In the developing brain, the abundance of sense and antisense transcripts are inversely related, suggesting a role for the antisense RNA in posttranscriptional regulation of FGF-2 expression in this tissue. The FGF-AS is complementary to two widely separated regions in the long 3' untranslated region of the FGF-2 mRNA, in the vicinity of the proximal and distal polyadenylylation sites. These findings demonstrate that the FGF-2 and fgf-as RNAs are coordinately transcribed on a tissue-specific and developmentally regulated basis and suggest that interaction of the sense and antisense RNAs may result in posttranscriptional regulation of FGF-2 in some tissues.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada B3H 4H7.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Knee
authors.forename: A W
authors.initials: AW
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: P R
authors.initials: PR
authors.lastname: Murphy
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging / Q000378:metabolism; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D001483:Base Sequence; D001921:Brain / Q000378:metabolism; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D016384:Consensus Sequence; D018076:DNA, Complementary / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D004622:Embryo, Mammalian; D004625:Embryo, Nonmammalian; D016222:Fibroblast Growth Factor 2 / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification; D005346:Fibroblast Growth Factors / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D015151:Immunoblotting; D007668:Kidney / Q000378:metabolism; D008099:Liver / Q000378:metabolism; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009206:Myocardium / Q000378:metabolism; D009928:Organ Specificity; D014176:Protein Biosynthesis; D016372:RNA, Antisense / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D014982:Xenopus laevis
chemical_list: D018076:DNA, Complementary; C520403:NUDT6 protein, rat; D016372:RNA, Antisense; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D016222:Fibroblast Growth Factor 2; D005346:Fibroblast Growth Factors