Sp2 is a maternally inherited transcription factor required for embryonic development.
The Sp family of transcription factors is required for the expression of cell cycle- and developmentally regulated genes, and the deregulated expression of a handful of family members is associated with human tumorigenesis. Sp2 is a relatively poorly characterized member of the Sp family that, although widely expressed, exhibits little or no DNA binding or transcriptional activity in human and mouse cell lines. To begin to address the role(s) played by Sp2 in early metazoan development we have cloned and characterized Sp2 from zebrafish (Danio rerio). We report that 1) the intron/exon organization and amino acid sequence of zebrafish Sp2 is closely conserved with its mammalian orthologues, 2) zebrafish Sp2 weakly stimulates an Sp-dependent promoter in vitro and associates with the nuclear matrix in a DNA-independent fashion, 3) zebrafish Sp2 is inherited as a maternal transcript, is transcribed in zebrafish embryos and adult tissues, and is required for completion of gastrulation, and 4) zebrafish lines carrying transgenes regulated by the Sp2 promoter recapitulate patterns of endogenous Sp2 expression.
Xie
Jianzhen
J
From the Department of Molecular Biomedical Sciences and the Center for Comparative Medicine and Translational Research, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27606.
Yin
Haifeng
H
From the Department of Molecular Biomedical Sciences and the Center for Comparative Medicine and Translational Research, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27606.
Nichols
Teresa D
TD
From the Department of Molecular Biomedical Sciences and the Center for Comparative Medicine and Translational Research, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27606.
Yoder
Jeffrey A
JA
From the Department of Molecular Biomedical Sciences and the Center for Comparative Medicine and Translational Research, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27606.
Horowitz
Jonathan M
JM
From the Department of Molecular Biomedical Sciences and the Center for Comparative Medicine and Translational Research, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27606. Electronic address: jon_horowitz@ncsu.edu.
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D019556:COS Cells; D002522:Chlorocebus aethiops; D002874:Chromosome Mapping; D004622:Embryo, Mammalian / Q000196:embryology / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D017403:In Situ Hybridization; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008856:Microscopy, Fluorescence; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic / Q000235:genetics; D023121:RNA, Messenger, Stored / Q000235:genetics; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D051704:Sp2 Transcription Factor / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D026801:Synteny; D014158:Transcription, Genetic; D015027:Zebrafish / Q000196:embryology / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development; D029961:Zebrafish Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism
D023121:RNA, Messenger, Stored; D029961:Zebrafish Proteins; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins; D051704:Sp2 Transcription Factor