title: Developmental expression and subcellular localization of wallaby gonadotropin-releasing hormone receptor and its splice variants.
abstract: The developmental expression of gonadotropin-releasing hormone receptor (GnRH-R) and its splice variants was examined in the gonads of tammar wallaby pouch young in order to elucidate the functional role of GnRH-R in the developing testis and ovary. Wallaby GnRH-R, like eutherian GnRH-Rs, contains three exons and two introns. In the present study, the transcripts of two splice variants (GnRH-R Delta 1 and GnRH-R Delta 2) were cloned from the pituitary. GnRH-R Delta 1 contained a 291 bp deletion from nucleotide positions 232 to 522 within exon 1. This transcript appears to be distinctive in the wallaby and has not been reported in other species. GnRH-R Delta 2 contained a 220 bp deletion from nucleotide positions 523 to 742, corresponding to exon 2. We examined the subcellular localization of the wild type GnRH-R and its splice variants with confocal microscopy, showing that both the wild type receptor and the splice variants were membrane-associated molecules. The different pattern of expression of the wild type receptor and the variants transcripts found in adult and neonatal tissues suggests a specific developmental regulation of the GnRH-R Delta 2 transcript. In addition, the developmental expression of the GnRH-R and GnRH-R Delta 1 transcripts showed a possible association with key physiological events during gonadal development in the wallaby pouch young, suggesting that GnRH-R may be involved in the regulation of early development in the testis and ovary.
authors.affiliation: Developmental Biology Research Group, Research School of Biological Sciences, The Australian National University, GPO Box 475, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia. tcheung@liai.org
authors.forename: Timothy C
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: Cheung
authors.forename: John P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Hearn
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging / Q000378:metabolism*; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D001483:Base Sequence; D004274:DNA, Recombinant; D014644:Genetic Variation; D007614:Macropodidae / Q000378:metabolism*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011966:Receptors, LHRH / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D013347:Subcellular Fractions / Q000378:metabolism*; D014018:Tissue Distribution; D014158:Transcription, Genetic
chemical_list: D004274:DNA, Recombinant; D011966:Receptors, LHRH