Identification of nine tissue-specific transcription factors of the hepatocyte nuclear factor 3/forkhead DNA-binding-domain family

Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1993 May 1;90(9):3948-52. doi: 10.1073/pnas.90.9.3948.

Abstract

Hepatocyte nuclear factor (HNF)-3 alpha, -3 beta, and -3 gamma are liver transcription factors that mediate the coordinate expression of a number of hepatocyte-specific genes. The HNF-3 proteins share DNA-binding-domain homology among themselves and with the Drosophila homeotic protein forkhead (fkh). The HNF-3/fkh DNA-binding domain constitutes an uncharacterized protein motif that recognizes its cognate DNA binding site as a monomer. Additional HNF-3/fkh-related proteins are known to be required for determination events during embryogenesis in Drosophila and Xenopus. In this report, we describe the isolation of nine additional HNF-3/fkh homologue (HFH) clones from rodent tissue cDNAs by using both low-stringency hybridization and a polymerase chain reaction protocol. Many of the HFH genes exhibit a tissue-restricted expression pattern and are transcribed in tissues other than liver, including brain, kidney, lung, and intestine. The HNF-3/fkh motif therefore comprises a large gene family of transcription factors that play a role in tissue-specific gene regulation and development.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Animals
  • Base Sequence
  • Blotting, Northern
  • DNA / metabolism
  • DNA-Binding Proteins / genetics*
  • DNA-Binding Proteins / metabolism
  • Drosophila / genetics
  • Gene Library
  • Hepatocyte Nuclear Factor 3-alpha
  • Hepatocyte Nuclear Factor 3-beta
  • Hepatocyte Nuclear Factor 3-gamma
  • Humans
  • Lung / metabolism
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Mutagenesis, Site-Directed
  • Nuclear Proteins / genetics*
  • Nuclear Proteins / metabolism
  • Oligodeoxyribonucleotides
  • Oligonucleotides, Antisense
  • Organ Specificity
  • Polymerase Chain Reaction / methods
  • RNA / genetics
  • RNA / isolation & purification
  • Rats
  • Restriction Mapping
  • Sequence Homology, Amino Acid
  • Transcription Factors / genetics*
  • Transcription Factors / metabolism

Substances

  • DNA-Binding Proteins
  • FOXA1 protein, human
  • FOXA2 protein, human
  • FOXA3 protein, human
  • Foxa1 protein, rat
  • Foxa2 protein, rat
  • Foxa3 protein, rat
  • Hepatocyte Nuclear Factor 3-alpha
  • Nuclear Proteins
  • Oligodeoxyribonucleotides
  • Oligonucleotides, Antisense
  • Transcription Factors
  • Hepatocyte Nuclear Factor 3-gamma
  • Hepatocyte Nuclear Factor 3-beta
  • RNA
  • DNA

Associated data

  • GENBANK/L13192
  • GENBANK/L13193
  • GENBANK/L13201
  • GENBANK/L13202
  • GENBANK/L13203
  • GENBANK/L13204
  • GENBANK/L13205
  • GENBANK/L13206
  • GENBANK/L13207