The S100A12 gene belongs to the S100 family of genes, which are specific to vertebrates. It is involved in many inflammatory diseases of human and has been considered as a powerful diagnostic gene. In the present study, we identified the porcine S100A12 (pS100A12) gene, provided evidence that pS100A12 is located on chromosome 4 and is closely linked to SW512. We show that pS100A12 is expressed preferentially in immune organs/tissues, e.g., bone marrow, spleen, and inguinal lymph nodes. Expression of the pS100A12 gene is dramatically induced in porcine whole blood cultures by both lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and polyinosine-polycytidylic acid (Poly(I:C)). Elevated expression of pS100A12 is also correlated with in vivo infection with porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV-2) from at least 48h post infection. By analyzing a series of pS100A12 promoter reporter constructs, we have defined two crucial regions (-1013 to -590, -135 to -50) that are responsible for LPS- and Poly(I:C)-induced transcriptional activation, and demonstrated that the LPS/Poly(I:C)-PKC-C/EBPb-pS100A12 pathway may play a critical role in the transcription of the pS100A12.
Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.