Galectin genes: regulation of expression.

In this review we have summarized the more recent studies on the expression of mammalian galectins. One interesting observation that can be made is that in most of microarrays and/or differential display analysis performed in recent years one or more galectins have been picked up. From a critical evaluation of the pertinent studies the main conclusion that can be drawn is that, although it is not yet clear whether the 14 galectins identified so far have functions in common, a striking common feature of all galectins is the strong modulation of their expression during development, differentiation stages and under different physiological or pathological conditions. This suggests that the expression of different galectins is finely tuned and possibly coordinated. In spite of these observations it is rather unexpected that very few studies have been performed on the molecular mechanisms governing the activity of galectin genes

Regulation of insulin-like-growth-factor-II gene expression in rat liver cells.

The rat insulin-like-growth-factor-(IGF)-II gene is expressed at high levels during embryonic and fetal life and at low levels in adult animals. To study the regulation of IGF-II gene expression, we analyzed the synthesis and localization of the IGF-II transcripts in cultured rat liver cells either expressing (BRL3A cells) or not expressing (BRL30E and FAO cells) the IGF-II mRNA. The IGF-II gene is transcribed at a similar rate in expressing and non-expressing cells, whereas its nuclear and cytoplasmic RNA levels are diversely distributed in the cells. IGF-II RNA is more abundant in the cytoplasmic than in the nuclear RNA fraction of BRL3A cells and is present in the nucleus but not in the cytoplasm of the FAO cells. However, both precursor and mature IGF-II nuclear RNA levels are reduced in FAO cells. Our data indicate that the IGF-II gene expression is regulated by mechanisms affecting the subcellular distribution and the abundance of the transcripts

Location of the hisGDCBHAFI operon on the physical map of Escherichia coli.

No abstract available

Multiple levels of control of insulin-like growth factor gene expression.

Review. No abstract available

Control of mRNA processing and decay in prokaryotes.

Post-transcriptional mechanisms operate in regulation of gene expression in bacteria, the amount of a given gene product being also dependent on the inactivation rate of its own message. Moreover, segmental differences in mRNA stability of polycistronic transcripts may be responsible for differential expression of genes clustered in operons. Given the absence of 5' to 3' exoribonucleolytic activities in prokaryotes, both endoribonucleases and 3' to 5' exoribonucleases are involved in chemical decay of mRNA. As the 3' to 5' exoribonucleolytic activities are readily blocked by stem-loop structures which are usual at the 3' ends of bacterial messages, the rate of decay is primarily determined by the rate of the first endonucleolytic cleavage within the transcripts, after which the resulting mRNA intermediates are degraded by the 3' to 5' exoribonucleases. Consequently, the stability of a given transcript is determined by the accessibility of suitable target sites to endonucleolytic activities. A considerable number of bacterial messages decay with a net 5' to 3' directionality. Two different alternative models have been proposed to explain such a finding, the first invoking the presence of functional coupling between degradation and the movement of the ribosomes along the transcripts, the second one implying the existence of a 5' to 3' processive '5' binding nuclease'. The different systems by which these two current models of mRNA decay have been tested will be presented with particular emphasis on polycistronic transcripts