Mouse HNF-3 fork head homolog-l-like gene:: Structure, chromosomal location, and expression in adult and embryonic kidney

Screening of a mouse kidney cDNA library with a HNF-3/fork head domain probe revealed cDNA Hfh-1L containing the highly conserved fork head DNA-binding domain. The Hfh1L cDNA shows 92.7% homology at the nucleic acid level with the fork head gene HFH-1 from rat. Southern blot analyses demonstrated that the HF-1L gene is highly conserved in a wide variety of species, including goldfish and frog, Sequencing the corresponding genomic clone, we found that the Hfh-1L gene is most likely intronless, By interspecific backcross analysis, the Hfh-1L gene was localized to mouse chromosome 13, In order to analyze the expression pattern of Hfh-1L, we performed Northern blot analyses and revealed a 2.7-kb transcript in adult kidney and stomach, In situ hybridization experiments of adult mouse kidney showed Hfh-1L expression in the outer medulla of the kidney and the transitional epithelium, In light of the significance of a number of fork head genes in early embryonic development, the pattern of expression during murine embryogenesis was examined by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), and Hfh-1L transcripts were detected in mouse embryos at every stage tested from day 10.5 to 16.5 postconception (p.c.) and in the developing metanephros of 14.5- and 15.5-day p.c. embryos, This expression pattern suggests that the Hfh-1L gene is involved in the development of the kidney.