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[SANET-MG] CaMV promoter is active in human digestive cells
The CaMV promoter was used in the majority of GM crops.
European Food Research and Technology
Publisher: Springer-Verlag GmbH
ISSN: 1438-2377 (Paper) 1438-2385 (Online)
DOI: 10.1007/s00217-005-0154-3
Issue: Online First
Original Paper
The 35S CaMV plant virus promoter is active in human enterocyte-like cells
Marit R. Myhre2, 4, Kristin A. Fenton4, Julia Eggert3, Kaare M. Nielsen3
and Terje Traavik1, 2
(1) GENOK-Norwegian Institute of Gene Ecology, Science Park, N-9294
Tromsø, Norway
(2) Department of Microbiology and Virology, Institute of Medical
Biology, University of Tromsø, N-9037 Tromsø, Norway
(3) Department of Pharmacy, University of Tromsø, N-9037 Tromsø, Norway
(4) Both authors have contributed equally, University of Tromsø, N-9037
Tromsø, Norway
Received: 22 May 2005 Accepted: 5 September 2005 Published online: 20
October 2005
Abstract The 35S cauliflower mosaic virus (CaMV) promoter is commonly
used to drive transgene expression in the genetically engineered (GE)
crop plants that have been commercialized so far. Whether, and how far,
the 35S promoter might be active in mammalian cells has been
scientifically unsettled and controversial. Very recently it was
established that the 35S promoter is transcriptionally active following
transient reporter gene transfections in continuous cell lines of human
[J Biotechnol 103:197–202, 2003] and hamster ovary [Environ Biosafety
Res 3:41–47, 2004] fibroblasts. The initial exposure of a human organism
to DNA from GE food takes place in the gastrointestinal tract (GIT).
Hence, we have now investigated the promoter capacity of 35S in human
enterocyte-like cells. We constructed expression vectors with 35S
promoter inserted in front of two reporter genes encoding firefly
luciferase and green fluorescent protein (GFP), respectively, and
performed transient transfection experiments in the human
enterocyte-like cell line Caco-2. It was demonstrated that the 35S CaMV
promoter was able to drive the expression of both reporter genes to
significant levels, although the protein expression levels might seem
modest compared to those obtained with the strong promoters derived from
human cytomegalo virus (hCMV) and simian virus 40 (SV40). Furthermore,
computer-based searches of the 35S CaMV DNA sequence for putative
mammalian transcription factor binding motifs gave a high number of
hits. Some of the identified motifs indicate that transcriptional
activation by the 35S CaMV promoter may be stronger in other human and
animal cell types than in those investigated so far.
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