The fifth exon of the myelin proteolipid protein-coding gene is not utilized in the brain of jimpy mutant mice.

The jimpy mouse, an X-linked recessive dysmyelinating and demyelinating mutant, has been shown to contain abnormal myelin proteolipid protein (PLP) mRNA. To understand the molecular basis of the mutation, we analyzed the structure of PLP mRNA by an RNase-mapping procedure, using the probes specific to each exon of the mouse PLP gene. We found that the fifth exon of the PLP gene is not utilized in the jimpy.