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Suprabasin, a novel epidermal differentiation marker and potential cornified envelope precursor
Geon Tae Park1, Susan E Lim, Shyh-Ing Jang
1Developmental Skin Biology Unit, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20892, USA.
The Journal of Biological Chemistry
|September 14, 2002
Summary
Suprabasin, a novel gene in differentiating keratinocytes, is identified and characterized. Its expression in stratified epithelia suggests a role in epidermal differentiation.
Area of Science:
- Molecular Biology
- Dermatology
- Genetics
Background:
- Suprabasin is a novel gene identified in differentiating mouse and human keratinocytes.
- Its expression is specific to differentiated keratinocytes in stratified epithelia.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify and characterize the suprabasin gene and its protein product.
- To investigate the role of suprabasin in epidermal differentiation.
Main Methods:
- Suppression subtractive hybridization was used to identify suprabasin cDNA.
- Northern blotting and fluorescence in situ hybridization were employed for transcript and gene mapping.
- Primary keratinocyte cultures were used to study suprabasin induction.
Main Results:
- Suprabasin mRNA transcripts (0.7 and 2.2 kb) were detected in differentiated keratinocytes.
- The mouse suprabasin gene was mapped to chromosome 7, syntenic to human 19q13.1.
- Suprabasin expression was induced by calcium or TPA treatment and detected in embryonic epidermis.
- The 2.2-kb transcript encodes a 72-kDa protein with distinct domains; a shorter transcript results from alternative splicing.
- Suprabasin is a substrate for transglutaminase 2 and 3.
Conclusions:
- Suprabasin is a differentiation-induced gene in keratinocytes.
- The protein structure and its interaction with transglutaminases suggest a role in epidermal differentiation.