The 3' untranslated region of the new rat synaptic vesicle protein 2B mRNA transcript inhibits translational...

Post-transcriptional regulatory mechanisms have been shown to play a major role in gene expression in eukaryotic cells. Sequences within the 3'-untranslated region (3'UTR) of mRNAs have been described as being important for enhancing or inhibiting message translation. Using fluorescence microscopy, Western blotting and the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) method, we demonstrate that the 3'UTR of the new rat transcript of synaptic vesicle protein 2B (SV2Bb) mRNA is involved in post-transcriptional regulation of SV2Bb translation. When fused to a reporter gene, this 3'UTR markedly inhibited protein synthesis in transiently transfected cells and this decreased translational efficiency did not occur through changes in mRNA stability. In conclusion, our study gives new insights into unraveling the molecular mechanisms involved in the post-transcriptional regulation of the SV2B gene.