Chromosomal Location of the Co-Expressed Human Skeletal and Cardiac Actin Genes

• Published in: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS Vol. 81; no. 6; pp. 1813 - 1817
• Main Authors: Gunning, Peter, Ponte, Phyllis, Kedes, Larry, Eddy, Roger, Shows, Thomas
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 01.03.1984; National Acad Sciences
• Subjects: Actins; Actins - genetics; Cell separation; Chromosome Mapping; Chromosomes; Chromosomes, Human, 1-3; Chromosomes, Human, 13-15; DNA probes; Enzymes; Gene Expression Regulation; Genes; Heart - physiology; Human chromosomes; Humans; Hybrid Cells; Hybridity; Muscles - physiology; Somatic cells
• ISSN: 0027-8424; 1091-6490
• DOI: 10.1073/pnas.81.6.1813

We have examined the relationship between chromosomal location and regulation of the two human genes encoding the sarcomeric muscle actins. The human genes encoding skeletal α -actin and cardiac α -actin are co-expressed in both human skeletal muscle and heart. We have subcloned a single-copy DNA fragment from an intervening sequence in the human cardiac α -actin gene and a single-copy DNA sequence from the 3′untranslated region of a human skeletal α -actin cDNA. Using these two gene-specific probes, we examined DNA isolated from human-mouse somatic cell hybrid lines segregating human chromosomes. We observed the segregation of restriction endonuclease-generated DNA cleavage fragments that hybridize to the two probes. The two striated muscle genes do not co-segregate and are on different autosomes. The human cardiac α -actin gene (ACTC) is on chromosome 15 in the q11→ qter region whereas the skeletal α -actin gene (ACTSK) is on chromosome 1 in the p21→ qter region. The co-expression of these two genes is not a function of chromosomal linkage. Neither of these muscle genes can be the primary target resulting in X-linked muscular dystrophies.