Protein Factors in Thyrotropic Tumor Nuclear Extracts Bind to a Region of the Mouse Thyrotropin β-Subunit Promoter Essential for Expression in Thyrotropes

Abstract

The beta-subunit gene of TSH is specifically expressed in thyrotrope cells of the anterior pituitary gland. To define the particular TSH beta-subunit gene sequences responsible for tissue-specific expression, TSH beta promoter fragments were assessed for promoter activity by gene transfer into TSH-expressing thyrotropic tumor cells (TtT-97). Previous studies have shown that the murine TSH beta gene promoter was more efficiently used in TtT-97 cells compared to other pituitary-derived cells or nonpituitary fibroblasts and that a 191-basepair DNA sequence of the 5' flanking region between -271 and -80 was sufficient for maximal promoter activity in thyrotropes. Further deletional analysis within this region has localized the area responsible for expression in thyrotropes to a 37-basepair region between -117 and -80 up-stream of the major transcriptional initiation site. DNase-I protection assays demonstrated that this functionally defined 5' flanking area, in addition to the adjacent sequences immediately up-stream and down-stream, interacts with protein factors present in nuclear extracts from TtT-97 tumor cells. When fused to a heterologous promoter, fragments derived from the region between -271 and -80 exhibited cell-specific activity, although this was not conferred solely by the TSH beta promoter fragment from -117 to -80. Heterologous promoter activity was further stimulated when fragments containing the areas from -271 or -201 to -77 were used, suggesting combinatorial cis interactions between these regions of the TSH beta promoter. DNase-I protection studies suggest that there are multiple protein-binding domains in the mouse TSH beta 5' flanking sequence. Only the more proximal domains, which encompass important promoter elements, appear to be required for efficient expression in thyrotropes, whereas other more up-stream sites of protein interaction may be involved in regulatory aspects of TSH beta gene expression.