A novel murine beta -defensin expressed in tongue, esophagus, and trachea.
beta-Defensins are broad spectrum antimicrobial peptides expressed at epithelial surfaces. Two human beta-defensins, HBD-1 and HBD-2, have been identified. In the lung, HBD-2 is an inducible product of airway epithelia and may play a role in innate mucosal defenses. We recently characterized rat homologs (RBD-1, RBD-2) of the human genes and used these sequences to identify novel mouse genes. Mouse beta-defensin-4 (MBD-4) was amplified from lung cDNA using polymerase chain reaction primers designed from conserved sequences of RBD-2 and HBD-2. A full-length cDNA was cloned which encodes a putative peptide with the sequence MRIHYLLFTFLLVLLSPLAAFTQIINNPITCMTNGAICWGPCPTAFRQIGNCGHFKVRCCKIR. The peptide shares approximately 40% identity with HBD-2. MBD-4 mRNA was expressed in the esophagus, tongue, and trachea but not in any of 20 other tissues surveyed. Cloning of the genomic sequence of MBD-4 revealed two nearly (>99%) identical sequences encoding MBD-4 and the presence of numerous additional highly similar genomic sequences. Radiation hybrid mapping localized this gene to a region of chromosome 8 near several other defensins, MBD-2, MBD-3, and alpha-defensins (cryptdins)-3 and -17, consistent with a gene cluster. Our genomic cloning and mapping data suggest that there is a large beta-defensin gene family in mice. Identification of murine beta-defensins provides an opportunity to understand further the role of these peptides in host defense through animal model studies and the generation of beta-defensin-deficient animals by gene targeting.
Jia
H P
HP
Departments of Pediatrics, Genetics Ph.D. Program, and Microbiology, University of Iowa College of Medicine, Iowa City, Iowa 52242, USA.
Wowk
S A
SA
Schutte
B C
BC
Lee
S K
SK
Vivado
A
A
Tack
B F
BF
Bevins
C L
CL
McCray
P B
PB
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D015139:Blotting, Southern; D002417:Cattle; D002874:Chromosome Mapping; D002898:Chromosomes, Human, Pair 8; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D018076:DNA, Complementary / Q000737:chemistry; D023082:Defensins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics*; D004947:Esophagus / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D051381:Rats; D014059:Tongue / Q000378:metabolism*; D014132:Trachea / Q000378:metabolism*
D018076:DNA, Complementary; D023082:Defensins