title: Molecular characterization of thyroid hormone receptors from the leopard gecko, and their differential expression in the skin.
abstract: Thyroid hormones (THs) play crucial roles in various developmental and physiological processes in vertebrates, including squamate reptiles. The effect of THs on shedding frequency is interesting in Squamata, since the effects on lizards are quite the reverse of those in snakes: injection of thyroxine increases shedding frequency in lizards, but decreases it in snakes. However, the mechanism underlying this differential effect remains unclear. To facilitate the investigation of the molecular mechanism of the physiological functions of THs in Squamata, their two specific receptor (TRalpha and beta) cDNAs, which are members of the nuclear hormone receptor superfamily, were cloned from a lizard, the leopard gecko, Eublepharis macularius. This is the first molecular cloning of thyroid hormone receptors (TRs) from reptiles. The deduced amino acid sequences showed high identity with those of other species, especially in the C and E/F domains, which are characteristic domains in nuclear hormone receptors. Expression analysis revealed that TRs were widely expressed in many tissues and organs, as in other animals. To analyze their role in the skin, temporal expression analysis was performed by RT-PCR, revealing that the two TRs had opposing expression patterns: TRalpha was expressed more strongly after than before skin shedding, whereas TRbeta was expressed more strongly before than after skin shedding. This provides good evidence that THs play important roles in the skin, and that the roles of their two receptor isoforms are distinct from each other.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoh-Ichiro
authors.initials: YI
authors.lastname: Kanaho
authors.forename: Daisuke
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Endo
authors.forename: Min Kyun
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Park
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D017931:DNA Primers / Q000737:chemistry; D018076:DNA, Complementary / Q000737:chemistry; D015870:Gene Expression / Q000502:physiology*; D008116:Lizards / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D012879:Skin Physiological Phenomena; D037021:Thyroid Hormone Receptors alpha / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D037042:Thyroid Hormone Receptors beta / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D017931:DNA Primers; D018076:DNA, Complementary; D037021:Thyroid Hormone Receptors alpha; D037042:Thyroid Hormone Receptors beta