Characterization of DeltaN-Zfp36l2 mutant associated with arrest of early embryonic development and female infertility

J Biol Chem. 2012 Apr 13;287(16):13116-27. doi: 10.1074/jbc.M111.330837. Epub 2012 Feb 24.

Abstract

The zinc finger protein 36-like 2, Zfp36l2, has been implicated in female mouse infertility, because an amino-terminal truncation mutation (ΔN-Zfp36l2) leads to two-cell stage arrest of embryos derived from the homozygous mutant female gamete. Zfp36l2 is a member of the tristetraprolin (TTP) family of CCCH tandem zinc finger proteins that can bind to transcripts containing AU-rich elements (ARE), resulting in deadenylation and destabilization of these transcripts. I show here that the mouse Zfp36l2 is composed of two exons and a single intron, encoding a polypeptide of 484 amino acids. I observed that ΔN-Zfp36l2 protein is similar to both wild-type Zfp36l2 and TTP (Zfp36) in that it shuttles between the cytoplasm and nucleus, binds to RNAs containing AREs, and promotes deadenylation of a model ARE transcript in a cell-based co-transfection assay. Surprisingly, in contrast to TTP, Zfp36l2 mRNA and protein were rapidly down-regulated upon LPS exposure in bone marrow-derived macrophages. The ΔN-Zfp36l2 protein was substantially more resistant to stimulus-induced down-regulation than the WT. I postulate that the embryonic arrest linked to the ΔN-Zfp36l2 truncation might be related to its resistance to stimulus-induced down-regulation.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Intramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adenosine Monophosphate / metabolism
  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Animals
  • Arabidopsis Proteins / physiology
  • Butyrate Response Factor 1
  • Down-Regulation / physiology
  • Embryonic Development / genetics*
  • Female
  • Fibroblasts / cytology
  • Fibroblasts / metabolism
  • Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental*
  • HEK293 Cells
  • Humans
  • Infertility, Female / genetics*
  • Infertility, Female / metabolism*
  • Macrophages / cytology
  • Macrophages / metabolism
  • Mice
  • Mice, Mutant Strains
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Nuclear Proteins / genetics*
  • Nuclear Proteins / metabolism*
  • Phenotype
  • RNA, Messenger / metabolism
  • RNA-Binding Proteins / genetics*
  • RNA-Binding Proteins / metabolism*
  • Vesicular Transport Proteins / physiology

Substances

  • Arabidopsis Proteins
  • Butyrate Response Factor 1
  • Nuclear Proteins
  • POK protein, Arabidopsis
  • RNA, Messenger
  • RNA-Binding Proteins
  • Vesicular Transport Proteins
  • Zfp36l1 protein, mouse
  • Adenosine Monophosphate