title: Pod-1, a mesoderm-specific basic-helix-loop-helix protein expressed in mesenchymal and glomerular epithelial cells in the developing kidney.
abstract: Basic-helix-loop-helix (bHLH) proteins are transcriptional regulatory proteins that govern cell fate determination and differentiation in a variety of tissues. We have identified a novel bHLH protein, named Pod-1, that belongs to a recently-described subfamily of bHLH proteins that have essential roles in the embryonic development of mesodermal tissues. In the adult human and mouse, Pod-1 was most highly expressed in the kidney, lung and heart. In developing mouse embryos, Pod-1 was selectively expressed in mesenchymal cells at sites of epithelial-mesenchymal interaction in the kidney, lung, intestine and pancreas. Pod-1 was also expressed in visceral glomerular epithelial cells (podocytes) in the kidney, and its expression coincided with the onset of podocyte differentiation. The expression of Pod-1 in embryonic kidney explants was inhibited using antisense oligonucleotides. Inhibition of Pod-1 expression resulted in decreased mesenchymal cell condensation around the ureteric bud and a 40% decrease in ureteric branching. Pod-1 is the first tissue-restricted basic-helix-loop-helix protein that has been identified in the developing kidney where it may play a role in the regulation of morphogenetic events.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine, 333 Cedar Street, New Haven, CT 06520-8029, USA.
authors.forename: S E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Quaggin
authors.forename: G B
authors.initials: GB
authors.lastname: Vanden Heuvel
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Igarashi
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D051792:Basic Helix-Loop-Helix Proteins; D015152:Blotting, Northern; D002874:Chromosome Mapping; D018076:DNA, Complementary / Q000302:isolation & purification; D004847:Epithelial Cells / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D018257:Helix-Loop-Helix Motifs / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D017403:In Situ Hybridization; D007678:Kidney Glomerulus / Q000166:cytology / Q000196:embryology* / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D008648:Mesoderm / Q000378:metabolism*; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008815:Mice, Inbred Strains; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016376:Oligonucleotides, Antisense / Q000494:pharmacology; D009924:Organ Culture Techniques; D009928:Organ Specificity / Q000235:genetics; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D051792:Basic Helix-Loop-Helix Proteins; D018076:DNA, Complementary; D016376:Oligonucleotides, Antisense; D014157:Transcription Factors; C491825:TCF21 protein, human; C112923:Tcf21 protein, mouse