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Partial sequencing and tissue distribution of the canine isoforms of steroid 5α‐Reductase type I and type II
Author(s) -
Span P.N.,
van Bokhoven A.,
Smals A.G.H.,
Sweep C.G.J.,
Schalken J.A.
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
the prostate
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.295
H-Index - 123
eISSN - 1097-0045
pISSN - 0270-4137
DOI - 10.1002/1097-0045(20000801)44:3<233::aid-pros8>3.0.co;2-c
Subject(s) - isozyme , gene isoform , biology , reductase , complementary dna , biochemistry , enzyme , microbiology and biotechnology , gene
BACKGROUND The dog is regarded to be a valid model to test the effects of 5α‐reductase inhibitors on prostatic growth. However, limited information is available on the characteristics or even existence of 5α‐reductase isozymes in this species. METHODS Here, we set out to clone the cDNA of the dog isoforms of 5α‐reductase type I and type II by a degenerate cloning strategy and to assess the tissue distribution of both transcripts and the enzymatic activity of the isozymes. RESULTS We identified two clones with homology to the human 5α‐reductase isoforms type I and type II to be expressed in dog prostate. At the amino‐acid level, these partial clones were found to exhibit a homology with their human counterparts of 83% and 88%, respectively. The expression levels of 5α‐reductase mRNA were screened by RT‐PCR in a number of dog tissues. No correlation was found between tissue mRNA expression and enzymatic 5α‐reductase activities. CONCLUSIONS The present study describes the partial cloning of the dog 5α‐reductase isozymes and their tissue distribution. These results provide additional data for the use of the dog as an animal model to investigate the role of 5α‐reductase isozymes in steroid metabolism. Prostate 44:233–239, 2000. © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.