Transcriptional regulation of the int-2 gene in embryonal carcinoma cells

The int-2 gene, which encodes a member of the fibroblast growth factor family, is expressed at specific sites and times during mouse development. In certain embryonal carcinoma cell lines, multiple int-2 transcripts accumulate when the cells are induced to differentiate with retinoic acid and dibutyryl cyclic AMP. Nuclear run-on analyses indicate that the apparent induction of int-2 expression results from an increase in the rate of transcription initiation. Six distinct types of RNA have been delineated, originating from three promoters and terminating at either of two polyadenylation sites. Since each transcript appears to encode the same protein, this complexity may reflect the need for lineage-specific or differentiation-dependent control of expression. By comparing the kinetics of induction and turnover of the different RNA species, we show that the choice of promoter or length of the 3'-untranslated region has no significant effect on the half-lives of the various mRNAs. To further evaluate control at the transcriptional level, we have shown that a 1.7-kilobase fragment of int-2 genomic DNA, when fused to the chloramphenicol acetyltransferase gene, can act as a regulated promoter(s) in differentiated versus undifferentiated embryonal carcinoma cells. This segment of DNA encompasses the three promoter regions previously delineated by RNase mapping plus about 900 base pairs of additional upstream sequences.