cDNA cloning and expression of oxysterol-binding protein, an oligomer with a potential leucine zipper

P. A. Dawson, N. D. Ridgway, C. A. Slaughter, M. S. Brown, J. L. Goldstein

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

134 Scopus citations

Abstract

Feedback repression of the genes encoding the low density lipoprotein receptor and several enzymes of the cholesterol biosynthetic pathway is mediated by 25-hydroxycholesterol and other oxysterols. In this study, we have cloned a rabbit cDNA encoding an oxysterol-binding protein that may play a role in this regulation. The predicted amino acid sequence revealed a protein of 809 amino acids with two distinctive features: 1) a glycine- and alanine-rich region (63% of 80 residues) at the NH2 terminus, and 2) a 35-residue leucine zipper motif that may mediate the previously observed oligomerization of the protein. When transfected into simian COS cells, the rabbit cDNA produced a protein that exhibited the same affinity and specificity for sterols as the previously purified hamster liver protein. Immunoblotting analysis showed that the rabbit cDNA encodes both the 96- and 101-kilodalton forms of the oxysterol-binding protein that were previously observed. The availability of an expressible cDNA for the oxysterol-binding protein should help elucidate its role in sterol metabolism.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)16798-16803
Number of pages6
JournalJournal of Biological Chemistry
Volume264
Issue number28
StatePublished - 1989

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Biochemistry
  • Molecular Biology
  • Cell Biology

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