Activation of fibroblast growth factor 8 gene expression in human embryonal carcinoma cells

• Published in: The Journal of steroid biochemistry and molecular biology Vol. 62; no. 1; pp. 1 - 10
• Main Authors: Wu, Jackson, Payson, Robert A., Lang, Jas C., Chiu, Ing-Ming
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier Ltd 01.05.1997; Elsevier Science
• Subjects: Adult; Amino Acid Sequence; Animals; Apud cells. Peptide and protein hormones. Growth factors; Base Sequence; Biological and medical sciences; Brain - embryology; Brain - metabolism; Breast - metabolism; Breast Neoplasms - metabolism; Carcinoma, Embryonal - metabolism; Cattle; Cloning, Organism; Exons; Female; Fibroblast Growth Factor 1 - chemistry; Fibroblast Growth Factor 2 - chemistry; Fibroblast Growth Factor 8; Fibroblast Growth Factors; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic; Growth Substances - biosynthesis; Growth Substances - chemistry; Growth Substances - genetics; Humans; Kidney Neoplasms - metabolism; Lung - embryology; Lung - metabolism; Male; Mice; Molecular Sequence Data; Ovarian Neoplasms - metabolism; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Prostatic Hyperplasia - metabolism; Recombinant Proteins - biosynthesis; Recombinant Proteins - chemistry; Sequence Alignment; Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid; Testicular Neoplasms - metabolism; Tumor Cells, Cultured; Vertebrates: endocrinology; Human; Fibroblast growth factor; Cell line; Development; Gene organization; Malignant tumor; Gene expression; In vitro
• ISSN: 0960-0760; 1879-1220
• DOI: 10.1016/S0960-0760(97)00022-8

To study the role of fibroblast growth factor 8 (FGF-8) in human development and malignancies, we have isolated and characterized its gene. The gene spans 6.0 kbp and is comprised of five exons. Using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, we were able to show that FGF-8 is expressed in two of the seven human mammary carcinoma cell lines tested and in only one of nine breast tumors. In contrast, both of the two normal breast tissues tested express FGF-8. FGF-8 was previously shown to be present in adult testis and ovary. Surprisingly, only one of the seven testis carcinomas and one of 12 ovary carcinomas express FGF-8, whereas all three kidney carcinomas tested express FGF-8. We further showed that fetal brain and lung express FGF-8, whereas fetal intestine and liver do not. Finally, we showed that a teratocarcinoma cell line, Tera-2, can be induced to express FGF-8 mRNA by fetal bovine serum.