Cloning, structural organization analysis, and chromosomal assignment of the human gene for the neurosecretory protein Vgf

The Vgf gene was originally identified as a 2.7-kb cDNA fragment isolated from nerve growth factor-treated PC12 cells by differential display against PC12 cells. It is transcribed solely in subpopulations of neuroendocrine cells in vivo and it is induced by neurotrophins in target cells in vitro. The single-copy human VGF gene was isolated from a genomic library. The gene spans approximately 6 kb and contains two exons. The entire VGF protein is encoded by exon 2, while exon 1 contains only 5'-untranslated sequence. The structural organization of the human gene is similar to that described for the rat Vgf gene (S. R. J. Salton et al., 1991, Mol. Cell. Biol. 11: 2335-2349) and both the translated and the untranslated regions show a high degree of sequence homology to the rat gene. Northern blot analysis revealed a single transcript of approximately 2.7 kb that was detected only in mRNA preparations from brain. The gene was assigned to chromosome 7q22 by fluorescence in situ hybridization.