Me. Pierce et al., CIRCADIAN REGULATION OF IODOPSIN GENE-EXPRESSION IN EMBRYONIC PHOTORECEPTORS IN RETINAL CELL-CULTURE, Neuron, 10(4), 1993, pp. 579-584
A circadian clock regulates number of diverse physiological functions
in the vertebrate eye. In this study, we show that mRNA for the red-se
nsitive cone pigment, iodopsin, fluctuates with a circadian rhythm in
chicken retina. Transcript levels increase in the late afternoon just
prior to the time of cone disc shedding. Furthermore, iodopsin mRNA le
vels are regulated similarly by a circadian oscillator in primary cult
ures of dispersed embryonic chick retina. Nuclear run-on experiments s
how that the circadian regulation of iodopsin transcript abundance occ
urs at the level of gene transcription. Our results provide a demonstr
ation of clock-regulated gene expression in a vertebrate preparation m
aintained in cell culture.