Search for oncogenic regulators in an autocrine tumor model using differential display PCR: identification of novel candidate genes including the calcium channel mtrp6.

A hemopoietic multistep tumor model, in which IL-3 dependent PB-3c mast cells, following expression of v-H-ras progress in vivo to IL-3 producing autocrine tumors has previously been established. Central for this oncogenic progression is a recessive step, which is reversible by cell fusion and leads to stabilization of IL-3 mRNA with concomitant activation of the autocrine loop. Comparing the IL-3 dependent PB-3c and the IL-3 autocrine V2D1 tumor cells with differential display PCR revealed 12 differentially expressed genes of which eight were upregulated and four downregulated in the tumor. They included four proteases (mouse mast cell protease 2, granzyme B, pepsinogen F and serine protease 1) and two metabolic enzymes (adenine phosphoribosyltransferase and fructose1,6-bisphosphatase). For validation, expression of the identified genes was tested in independent PB-3c precursor clones and their tumor derivatives. Expression of an endogenous retroviral IAP element and three unknown transcripts were consistently upregulated in all tumor lines. In somatic cell hybrids, two of these unknown cDNAs showed a dominant and one a recessive expression pattern. One transcript, expressed in the precursor but downregulated in the tumor cells, was cloned and identified as the murine calcium channel mtrp6.