EXPRESSION PROFILE OF ACTIVE GENES IN GRANULOCYTES

A number of genes active in granulocytes have been intensively studied as to the function of their products and their expression controls. H owever, the intensities and relative order of these gene activities ha ve not been studied. This report describes an expression profile of 74 8 different species of active genes in human peripheral granulocytes o btained by analyzing a 3'-directed cDNA library that faithfully repres ents the mRNA population in the source cells. A significant fraction ( 20.3% of the total) of the expressed genes in granulocytes consisted o f nuclear proteins such as DNA binding proteins, of secretory proteins such as cytokines, and of membrane proteins such as major histocompat ibility complex (MHC) proteins and receptors. By comparing this expres sion profile with II profiles similarly obtained with unrelated human cells/tissues, we discovered 10 novel genes that are likely to act spe cifically in granulocytes. Comparison of this expression profile with that obtained with granulocytoids widely used as a granulocyte model b y inducing a cultured promyelocytic leukemia cell line HL60 showed sim ilarities and dissimilarities of gene expressions. (C) 1998 by The Ame rican Society of Hematology.