Skip to main content
PMC home page
The EMBO Journal logoLink to The EMBO Journal
. 1991 May;10(5):1187–1192. doi: 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1991.tb08059.x

Human GATA-3: a lineage-restricted transcription factor that regulates the expression of the T cell receptor alpha gene.

I C Ho 1, P Vorhees 1, N Marin 1, B K Oakley 1, S F Tsai 1, S H Orkin 1, J M Leiden 1
PMCID: PMC452772  PMID: 1827068

Abstract

In addition to its role in the recognition of foreign antigens, the T cell receptor (TCR) alpha gene serves as a model system for studies of developmentally-regulated, lineage-specific gene expression in T cells. TCR alpha gene expression is restricted to cells of the TCR alpha/beta+ lineage, and is controlled by a T cell-specific transcriptional enhancer located 4.5 kb 3' to the C alpha gene segment. The TCR alpha enhancer contains four nuclear protein binding sites called T alpha 1-T alpha 4. In this report we describe the identification and characterization of a novel human cDNA, hGATA-3 that binds to the T alpha 3 element of the human TCR alpha enhancer. hGATA-3 contains a zinc finger domain that is highly related to the DNA-binding domain of the erythroid-specific transcription factor, GATA-1, and binds to a region of T alpha 3 that contains a consensus GATA binding site (AGATAG). Northern blot analyses of hematopoietic cell lines demonstrate that hGATA-3 is expressed exclusively in T cells. Overexpression of hGATA-3 in HeLa cells or human B cells specifically activated transcription from a co-transfected reporter plasmid containing two copies of the T alpha 3 binding site located upstream of the minimal SV40 promoter. Taken together these results demonstrate that hGATA-3 is a novel lineage-specific hematopoietic transcription factor that appears to play an important role in regulating the T cell-specific expression of the TCR alpha gene.

Full text

PDF
1187

Images in this article

1189Image
on p.1189
1190Image
on p.1190
1190Image
on p.1190

Selected References

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

  1. Auffray C., Rougeon F. Purification of mouse immunoglobulin heavy-chain messenger RNAs from total myeloma tumor RNA. Eur J Biochem. 1980 Jun;107(2):303–314. doi: 10.1111/j.1432-1033.1980.tb06030.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Bhat N. K., Fisher R. J., Fujiwara S., Ascione R., Papas T. S. Temporal and tissue-specific expression of mouse ets genes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1987 May;84(10):3161–3165. doi: 10.1073/pnas.84.10.3161. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Dugaiczyk A., Haron J. A., Stone E. M., Dennison O. E., Rothblum K. N., Schwartz R. J. Cloning and sequencing of a deoxyribonucleic acid copy of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase messenger ribonucleic acid isolated from chicken muscle. Biochemistry. 1983 Mar 29;22(7):1605–1613. doi: 10.1021/bi00276a013. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Evans R. M., Hollenberg S. M. Zinc fingers: gilt by association. Cell. 1988 Jan 15;52(1):1–3. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(88)90522-3. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Evans T., Felsenfeld G. The erythroid-specific transcription factor Eryf1: a new finger protein. Cell. 1989 Sep 8;58(5):877–885. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(89)90940-9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Evans T., Reitman M., Felsenfeld G. An erythrocyte-specific DNA-binding factor recognizes a regulatory sequence common to all chicken globin genes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1988 Aug;85(16):5976–5980. doi: 10.1073/pnas.85.16.5976. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Gottschalk L. R., Leiden J. M. Identification and functional characterization of the human T-cell receptor beta gene transcriptional enhancer: common nuclear proteins interact with the transcriptional regulatory elements of the T-cell receptor alpha and beta genes. Mol Cell Biol. 1990 Oct;10(10):5486–5495. doi: 10.1128/mcb.10.10.5486. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Ho I. C., Bhat N. K., Gottschalk L. R., Lindsten T., Thompson C. B., Papas T. S., Leiden J. M. Sequence-specific binding of human Ets-1 to the T cell receptor alpha gene enhancer. Science. 1990 Nov 9;250(4982):814–818. doi: 10.1126/science.2237431. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Ho I. C., Leiden J. M. Regulation of the human T-cell receptor alpha gene enhancer: multiple ubiquitous and T-cell-specific nuclear proteins interact with four hypomethylated enhancer elements. Mol Cell Biol. 1990 Sep;10(9):4720–4727. doi: 10.1128/mcb.10.9.4720. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Ho I. C., Yang L. H., Morle G., Leiden J. M. A T-cell-specific transcriptional enhancer element 3' of C alpha in the human T-cell receptor alpha locus. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1989 Sep;86(17):6714–6718. doi: 10.1073/pnas.86.17.6714. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Hoeffler J. P., Meyer T. E., Yun Y., Jameson J. L., Habener J. F. Cyclic AMP-responsive DNA-binding protein: structure based on a cloned placental cDNA. Science. 1988 Dec 9;242(4884):1430–1433. doi: 10.1126/science.2974179. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Ko H. S., Fast P., McBride W., Staudt L. M. A human protein specific for the immunoglobulin octamer DNA motif contains a functional homeobox domain. Cell. 1988 Oct 7;55(1):135–144. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(88)90016-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Kozak M. Compilation and analysis of sequences upstream from the translational start site in eukaryotic mRNAs. Nucleic Acids Res. 1984 Jan 25;12(2):857–872. doi: 10.1093/nar/12.2.857. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Kudla B., Caddick M. X., Langdon T., Martinez-Rossi N. M., Bennett C. F., Sibley S., Davies R. W., Arst H. N., Jr The regulatory gene areA mediating nitrogen metabolite repression in Aspergillus nidulans. Mutations affecting specificity of gene activation alter a loop residue of a putative zinc finger. EMBO J. 1990 May;9(5):1355–1364. doi: 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1990.tb08250.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Landolfi N. F., Capra J. D., Tucker P. W. Interaction of cell-type-specific nuclear proteins with immunoglobulin VH promoter region sequences. Nature. 1986 Oct 9;323(6088):548–551. doi: 10.1038/323548a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Landschulz W. H., Johnson P. F., McKnight S. L. The leucine zipper: a hypothetical structure common to a new class of DNA binding proteins. Science. 1988 Jun 24;240(4860):1759–1764. doi: 10.1126/science.3289117. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Leiden J. M., Karpinski B. A., Gottschalk L., Kornbluth J. Susceptibility to natural killer cell-mediated cytolysis is independent of the level of target cell class I HLA expression. J Immunol. 1989 Mar 15;142(6):2140–2147. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Leung K., Nabel G. J. HTLV-1 transactivator induces interleukin-2 receptor expression through an NF-kappa B-like factor. Nature. 1988 Jun 23;333(6175):776–778. doi: 10.1038/333776a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Li S., Crenshaw E. B., 3rd, Rawson E. J., Simmons D. M., Swanson L. W., Rosenfeld M. G. Dwarf locus mutants lacking three pituitary cell types result from mutations in the POU-domain gene pit-1. Nature. 1990 Oct 11;347(6293):528–533. doi: 10.1038/347528a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Martin D. I., Zon L. I., Mutter G., Orkin S. H. Expression of an erythroid transcription factor in megakaryocytic and mast cell lineages. Nature. 1990 Mar 29;344(6265):444–447. doi: 10.1038/344444a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Mitchell P. J., Tjian R. Transcriptional regulation in mammalian cells by sequence-specific DNA binding proteins. Science. 1989 Jul 28;245(4916):371–378. doi: 10.1126/science.2667136. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Murre C., McCaw P. S., Baltimore D. A new DNA binding and dimerization motif in immunoglobulin enhancer binding, daughterless, MyoD, and myc proteins. Cell. 1989 Mar 10;56(5):777–783. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(89)90682-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Müller M. M., Ruppert S., Schaffner W., Matthias P. A cloned octamer transcription factor stimulates transcription from lymphoid-specific promoters in non-B cells. Nature. 1988 Dec 8;336(6199):544–551. doi: 10.1038/336544a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. Redondo J. M., Hata S., Brocklehurst C., Krangel M. S. A T cell-specific transcriptional enhancer within the human T cell receptor delta locus. Science. 1990 Mar 9;247(4947):1225–1229. doi: 10.1126/science.2156339. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  25. Romeo P. H., Prandini M. H., Joulin V., Mignotte V., Prenant M., Vainchenker W., Marguerie G., Uzan G. Megakaryocytic and erythrocytic lineages share specific transcription factors. Nature. 1990 Mar 29;344(6265):447–449. doi: 10.1038/344447a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  26. Scheidereit C., Cromlish J. A., Gerster T., Kawakami K., Balmaceda C. G., Currie R. A., Roeder R. G. A human lymphoid-specific transcription factor that activates immunoglobulin genes is a homoeobox protein. Nature. 1988 Dec 8;336(6199):551–557. doi: 10.1038/336551a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  27. Shackelford D. A., Smith A. V., Trowbridge I. S. Changes in gene expression induced by a phorbol diester: expression of IL 2 receptor, T3, and T cell antigen receptor. J Immunol. 1987 Jan 15;138(2):613–619. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  28. Singh H., Sen R., Baltimore D., Sharp P. A. A nuclear factor that binds to a conserved sequence motif in transcriptional control elements of immunoglobulin genes. Nature. 1986 Jan 9;319(6049):154–158. doi: 10.1038/319154a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  29. Sive H. L., Roeder R. G. Interaction of a common factor with conserved promoter and enhancer sequences in histone H2B, immunoglobulin, and U2 small nuclear RNA (snRNA) genes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1986 Sep;83(17):6382–6386. doi: 10.1073/pnas.83.17.6382. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  30. Staudt L. M., Clerc R. G., Singh H., LeBowitz J. H., Sharp P. A., Baltimore D. Cloning of a lymphoid-specific cDNA encoding a protein binding the regulatory octamer DNA motif. Science. 1988 Jul 29;241(4865):577–580. doi: 10.1126/science.3399892. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  31. Staudt L. M., Singh H., Sen R., Wirth T., Sharp P. A., Baltimore D. A lymphoid-specific protein binding to the octamer motif of immunoglobulin genes. Nature. 1986 Oct 16;323(6089):640–643. doi: 10.1038/323640a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  32. Tsai S. F., Martin D. I., Zon L. I., D'Andrea A. D., Wong G. G., Orkin S. H. Cloning of cDNA for the major DNA-binding protein of the erythroid lineage through expression in mammalian cells. Nature. 1989 Jun 8;339(6224):446–451. doi: 10.1038/339446a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  33. Waterman M. L., Jones K. A. Purification of TCF-1 alpha, a T-cell-specific transcription factor that activates the T-cell receptor C alpha gene enhancer in a context-dependent manner. New Biol. 1990 Jul;2(7):621–636. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  34. Winoto A., Baltimore D. A novel, inducible and T cell-specific enhancer located at the 3' end of the T cell receptor alpha locus. EMBO J. 1989 Mar;8(3):729–733. doi: 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1989.tb03432.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  35. Winoto A., Baltimore D. Alpha beta lineage-specific expression of the alpha T cell receptor gene by nearby silencers. Cell. 1989 Nov 17;59(4):649–655. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(89)90010-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  36. Yamamoto M., Ko L. J., Leonard M. W., Beug H., Orkin S. H., Engel J. D. Activity and tissue-specific expression of the transcription factor NF-E1 multigene family. Genes Dev. 1990 Oct;4(10):1650–1662. doi: 10.1101/gad.4.10.1650. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  37. Zon L. I., Tsai S. F., Burgess S., Matsudaira P., Bruns G. A., Orkin S. H. The major human erythroid DNA-binding protein (GF-1): primary sequence and localization of the gene to the X chromosome. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1990 Jan;87(2):668–672. doi: 10.1073/pnas.87.2.668. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from The EMBO Journal are provided here courtesy of Nature Publishing Group

RESOURCES