Skip to main content
PMC home page
Nucleic Acids Research logoLink to Nucleic Acids Research
. 1982 May 25;10(10):3165–3173. doi: 10.1093/nar/10.10.3165

Human metallothionein genes: molecular cloning and sequence analysis of the mRNA.

M Karin, R I Richards
PMCID: PMC320698  PMID: 6896577

Abstract

From a cDNA clone bank prepared from cadmium-treated HeLa cells, we isolated clones representing mRNAs whose concentration is increased after cadmium induction. Several metallothionein cDNA clones were isolated by cross-hybridization to mouse metallothionein-I cDNA. The nucleotide sequence of one of these clones, containing a nearly full-length cDNA copy of human metallothionein-II mRNA, was determined. The homology between the human and mouse metallothionein sequences is strictly limited to the coding region of the mRNA. Codon usage in metallothionein mRNA is not random. Seventy-nine percent of the codons have G or C residues at the third position, resulting in a GC-rich sequence.

Full text

PDF

Images in this article

3168Image
on p.3168

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Aviv H., Leder P. Purification of biologically active globin messenger RNA by chromatography on oligothymidylic acid-cellulose. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1972 Jun;69(6):1408–1412. doi: 10.1073/pnas.69.6.1408. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Chan W. Y., Garnica A. D., Rennert O. M. Metal-binding studies of metallothioneins in Menkes kinky hair disease. Clin Chim Acta. 1978 Sep 1;88(2):221–228. doi: 10.1016/0009-8981(78)90426-6. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Chang A. C., Nunberg J. H., Kaufman R. J., Erlich H. A., Schimke R. T., Cohen S. N. Phenotypic expression in E. coli of a DNA sequence coding for mouse dihydrofolate reductase. Nature. 1978 Oct 19;275(5681):617–624. doi: 10.1038/275617a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Chirgwin J. M., Przybyla A. E., MacDonald R. J., Rutter W. J. Isolation of biologically active ribonucleic acid from sources enriched in ribonuclease. Biochemistry. 1979 Nov 27;18(24):5294–5299. doi: 10.1021/bi00591a005. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Cousins R. J. Letter: Zinc-thionein and heritable disorders associated with aberrant zinc metabolism. Lancet. 1976 Sep 25;2(7987):686–687. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(76)92493-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Durnam D. M., Perrin F., Gannon F., Palmiter R. D. Isolation and characterization of the mouse metallothionein-I gene. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1980 Nov;77(11):6511–6515. doi: 10.1073/pnas.77.11.6511. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Evans G. W., Bubois R. S., Hambidge K. M. Wilson's disease: identification of an abnormal copper-binding protein. Science. 1973 Sep 21;181(4105):1175–1176. doi: 10.1126/science.181.4105.1175. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Glanville N., Durnam D. M., Palmiter R. D. Structure of mouse metallothionein-I gene and its mRNA. Nature. 1981 Jul 16;292(5820):267–269. doi: 10.1038/292267a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Grunstein M., Hogness D. S. Colony hybridization: a method for the isolation of cloned DNAs that contain a specific gene. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1975 Oct;72(10):3961–3965. doi: 10.1073/pnas.72.10.3961. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Huang I. Y., Yoshida A. Mouse liver metallothioneins. Complete amino acid sequence of metallothionein-I. J Biol Chem. 1977 Nov 25;252(22):8217–8221. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Karin M., Andersen R. D., Herschman H. R. Induction of metallothionein mRNA in HeLa cells by dexamethasone and by heavy metals. Eur J Biochem. 1981 Sep 1;118(3):527–531. doi: 10.1111/j.1432-1033.1981.tb05551.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Karin M., Andersen R. D., Slater E., Smith K., Herschman H. R. Metallothionein mRNA induction in HeLa cells in response to zinc or dexamethasone is a primary induction response. Nature. 1980 Jul 17;286(5770):295–297. doi: 10.1038/286295a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Karin M., Herschman H. R. Dexamethasone stimulation of metallothionein synthesis in HeLa cell cultures. Science. 1979 Apr 13;204(4389):176–177. doi: 10.1126/science.432639. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Kissling M. M., Kägi H. R. Primary structure of human hepatic metallothionein. FEBS Lett. 1977 Oct 15;82(2):247–250. doi: 10.1016/0014-5793(77)80594-2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Proudfoot N. J., Brownlee G. G. 3' non-coding region sequences in eukaryotic messenger RNA. Nature. 1976 Sep 16;263(5574):211–214. doi: 10.1038/263211a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Pulido P., Kägi J. H., Vallee B. L. Isolation and some properties of human metallothionein. Biochemistry. 1966 May;5(5):1768–1777. doi: 10.1021/bi00869a046. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Richards R. I., Shine J., Ullrich A., Wells J. R., Goodman H. M. Molecular cloning and sequence analysis of adult chicken betal globin cDNA. Nucleic Acids Res. 1979 Nov 10;7(5):1137–1146. doi: 10.1093/nar/7.5.1137. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Rigby P. W., Dieckmann M., Rhodes C., Berg P. Labeling deoxyribonucleic acid to high specific activity in vitro by nick translation with DNA polymerase I. J Mol Biol. 1977 Jun 15;113(1):237–251. doi: 10.1016/0022-2836(77)90052-3. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Roberts J. L., Seeburg P. H., Shine J., Herbert E., Baxter J. D., Goodman H. M. Corticotropin and beta-endorphin: construction and analysis of recombinant DNA complementary to mRNA for the common precursor. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1979 May;76(5):2153–2157. doi: 10.1073/pnas.76.5.2153. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Rudd C. J., Herschman H. R. Metallothionein in a human cell line: the response of HeLa cells to cadmium and zinc. Toxicol Appl Pharmacol. 1979 Feb;47(2):273–278. doi: 10.1016/0041-008x(79)90321-1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Southern E. M. Detection of specific sequences among DNA fragments separated by gel electrophoresis. J Mol Biol. 1975 Nov 5;98(3):503–517. doi: 10.1016/s0022-2836(75)80083-0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Weaver C. A., Gordon D. F., Kemper B. Introduction by molecular cloning of artifactual inverted sequences at the 5' terminus of the sense strand of bovine parathyroid hormone cDNA. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1981 Jul;78(7):4073–4077. doi: 10.1073/pnas.78.7.4073. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Nucleic Acids Research are provided here courtesy of Oxford University Press

RESOURCES