Transition from cytosolic to mitochondrial thymidine kinase during development in human fetal tissues

The transition from cytosolic ("fetal") to mitochondrial ("adult") thymidine kinase, as detected by electrophoresis, was examined in six human fetal tissues of gestational ages 11-40 weeks. In all tissues there was an early period during development in which only the fetal form was detected, followed by a transitional period in which both fetal and adults forms were present, followed by a later period in which only the adult enzyme occurred. Transitional periods were 23-25 wk. gestational age for colon, 13-15 wk. for kidney, 18-20 wk. for liver, 14-18 wk. for lung, 34-36 wk. for serum, and 25-28 wk. for thyroid. In all cases, only the adult form was present by the time of birth and persisted during the first 18 months of extrauterine life. The adult form, but not the fetal form, was inhibited by dCTP.