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Transcriptional regulation of agouti-related protein (Agrp) in transgenic mice.
- Source :
-
Endocrinology [Endocrinology] 2004 Dec; Vol. 145 (12), pp. 5798-806. Date of Electronic Publication: 2004 Sep 02. - Publication Year :
- 2004
-
Abstract
- Agouti-related protein (Agrp) encodes a hypothalamic neuropeptide that promotes positive energy balance by stimulating food intake and reducing energy expenditure. Agrp expression in the brain is restricted to neurons within the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus, and expression levels are elevated as a consequence of food deprivation. We tested a series of bacterial artificial chromosome reporter constructs with varying amounts of sequence flanking the Agrp transcription unit in transgenic mice to identify and refine a region of DNA capable of recapitulating characteristics of Agrp expression. We report that a 42.5-kb region upstream of Agrp, containing three distinct regions that are evolutionarily conserved between mouse and human, is necessary and sufficient to consistently drive reporter expression specifically within AgRP neurons in a fasting-responsive manner. In addition, we demonstrate that this region allows for the stable expression of Cre recombinase in transgenic mice, providing a genetic tool for studying anabolic neural circuits that control energy balance.
- Subjects :
- Agouti-Related Protein
Animals
Chromosome Mapping
Conserved Sequence
Gene Expression Regulation physiology
Gene Library
Genes, Reporter
Integrases genetics
Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins
Mice
Mice, Inbred C57BL
Mice, Transgenic
Regulatory Sequences, Nucleic Acid
Transgenes genetics
Viral Proteins genetics
Proteins genetics
Transcription, Genetic physiology
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 0013-7227
- Volume :
- 145
- Issue :
- 12
- Database :
- MEDLINE
- Journal :
- Endocrinology
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 15345681
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1210/en.2004-0956