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Cloning, comparative characterization of porcine SCAP gene, and identification of its two splice variants

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Abstract

Sterol responsive element binding protein (SREBP) cleavage-activating protein (SCAP) is the key regulator of activation of SREBPs, which stimulate most enzymes in cholesterol and lipid synthesis. In order to investigate the molecular basis of lipid metabolism in the pig, a unique model for fat deposition, we isolated and characterized the porcine SCAP. The 4,096-bp full-length porcine SCAP cDNA contains an open reading frame of 3,840 bp. The predicted SCAP protein consists of 1,280 amino acids of 55–92% identity with its vertebrate counterparts. The porcine SCAP gene consists of at least 19 exons and 18 introns, which span over 13 kb of the genome. The porcine SCAP gene was mapped to chromosome 13q21–22 using a porcine-rodent somatic cell hybrid panel. Comparison of SCAP genomic structures from various species revealed intron losses in porcine, Tetraodon and fugu SCAP, and intron gains in cow and chicken SCAP. Moreover, we isolated two novel splicing SCAP variants with 193-bp (variant 2) in-frame deletion from testis and a variant with 291-bp (variant 3) in-frame deletion from liver and muscle, which may affect the function of the porcine SCAP. In conclusion, the intron gains and losses appear to have contributed to the shape of the modern SCAP family. The splice variants detected, first to be reported in any species, may be involved in the particulars of the fat metabolism in the pig. Our data lay foundation for further study of SCAP function in this species.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Dr. Leszek Wojnowski (Department of Pharmacology, Johannes Gutenberg University), Dr. Sandra Dieni and Dr. Shanting Zhao (Institute of Anatomy and Cell biology, Freiburg University) and two anonymous reviewers for critically reading and helpful comments on the manuscript. We are grateful to Dr. Martine Yerle and Dr. Denis Milan (INRA, Castanet-Tolosan, France) for kindly providing the RH panel. This work was supported by the grants from General Program and Key Program of National Natural Science Foundation and 863 Program of China to Dr. Zaiqing Yang.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Lab of Biochemistry, College of Life Science and Technology, Key Laboratory of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of Ministry of Education, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, People’s Republic of China

    Huan Qiu, Tao Xia, Xiaodong Chen, Xuelian Zhao, Li Gan, Shengqiu Feng, Ting Lei & Zaiqing Yang

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  1. Huan Qiu
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  2. Tao Xia
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  3. Xiaodong Chen
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  4. Xuelian Zhao
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  5. Li Gan
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  6. Shengqiu Feng
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  7. Ting Lei
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  8. Zaiqing Yang
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Correspondence to Zaiqing Yang.

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Communicated by P. Ruiz

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Qiu, H., Xia, T., Chen, X. et al. Cloning, comparative characterization of porcine SCAP gene, and identification of its two splice variants. Mol Genet Genomics 276, 187–196 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00438-006-0134-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00438-006-0134-8

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