A 3.4-kbp transcript of ZNF331 is solely expressed in follicular thyroid adenomas

Translocations involving chromosomal region 19q13 are a frequent finding in follicular adenomas of the thyroid and might represent the most frequent type of structural aberration in human epithelial tumors. By positional cloning, a putative candidate gene, ZNF331 (formerly RITA) located close to the breakpoint was identified. Recently, aberrant expression of ZNF331 has been described in two cell lines of follicular thyroid adenomas with aberrations in 19q13 indicating an involvement of ZNF331 in tumorigenesis. Nevertheless, knowledge about structure and expression of ZNF331 is limited. We performed RACE-PCR and genomic sequence analyses to gain a deeper insight into its molecular structure. To elucidate ZNF331 expression patterns we performed Northern blot analyses on various normal tissues as well as on thyroid carcinoma and adenoma cell lines. Herein, unique expression of a 3.4-kbp transcript is described in thyroid adenoma cell lines with 19q13 aberrations, which was not detected either in normal tissues or in thyroid carcinoma cell lines.