title: AUF1 is expressed in the developing brain, binds to AT-rich double-stranded DNA, and regulates enkephalin gene expression.
abstract: During our search for transcriptional regulators that control the developmentally regulated expression of the enkephalin (ENK) gene, we identified AUF1. ENK, a peptide neurotransmitter, displays precise cell-specific expression in the adult brain. AUF1 (also known as heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein D) has been known to regulate gene expression through altering the stability of AU-rich mRNAs. We show here that in the developing brain AUF1 proteins are expressed in a spatiotemporally defined manner, and p37 and p40/42 isoforms bind to an AT-rich double-stranded (ds) DNA element of the rat ENK (rENK) gene. This AT-rich dsDNA sequence acts as a cis-regulatory DNA element and is involved in regulating the cell-specific expression of the ENK gene in primary neuronal cultures. The AT-rich dsDNA elements are present at approximately 2.5 kb 5'upstream of the rat, human, and mouse ENK genes. AUF1 proteins are shown here to provide direct interaction between these upstream AT-rich DNA sequences and the TATA region of the rENK gene. Double immunohistochemistry demonstrated that in the developing brain AUF1 proteins are expressed by proliferating neural progenitors and by differentiating neurons populating brain regions, which will not express the ENK gene in the adult, suggesting a repressor role for AUF1 proteins during enkephalinergic differentiation. Their subnuclear distribution and interactions with AT-rich DNA suggest that in the developing brain they can be involved in complex nuclear regulatory mechanisms controlling the development- and cell-specific expression of the ENK gene.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, Physiology, and Genetics, School of Medicine, Uniformed Services University, Bethesda, Maryland 20814, USA.
authors.forename: Albert
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dobi
authors.forename: Marianna
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Szemes
authors.forename: Cheol
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Miklos
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Palkovits
authors.forename: Francis
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Lim
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gyorgy
authors.forename: Mark A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Mahan
authors.forename: Denes V
authors.initials: DV
authors.lastname: Agoston
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D001921:Brain / Q000196:embryology*; D004247:DNA / Q000737:chemistry*; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000737:chemistry; D004745:Enkephalins / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D000081035:Heterogeneous Nuclear Ribonucleoprotein D0; D034502:Heterogeneous-Nuclear Ribonucleoprotein D / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D051379:Mice; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D051381:Rats
chemical_list: D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D004745:Enkephalins; C000630986:HNRNPD protein, human; D000081035:Heterogeneous Nuclear Ribonucleoprotein D0; D034502:Heterogeneous-Nuclear Ribonucleoprotein D; C000630988:Hnrnpd protein, rat; C000630987:Hnrpd protein, mouse; D004247:DNA