Expression of the oligodendrocyte marker 2'3'-cyclic nucleotide 3'-phosphodiesterase in non-glial cells

The 46 kD isoform of the 2'3'-cyclic nucleotide 3'-phosphodiesterase (CNPI) was expressed in HeLa cells by transfection of its cDNA clone. The distribution of this polypeptide as mapped by indirect immunofluorescence and conventional epifluorescence microscopy appeared diffuse and generally uniform throughout the cytoplasm. Confocal microscopic imaging and analysis of pseudocolored images confirmed this distribution but also revealed that there was a high concentration of CNPI near the plasma membrane of the cell. This pattern is very similar to that observed by immunoelectronmicroscopy of myelinating oligodendrocytes (Trapp et al.: J Neurochem 51:859-868, 1988; Braun et al.: J Neurosci 8: 3057-3066, 1988). These results suggest that CNP may interact with a membrane-associated molecule that is not unique to oligodendrocytes.