Aim: To identify the new alternative splicing variants of human CYP2D6 in human extratumoral liver tissue with RT-PCR and sequencing.
Methods: Full length of human CYP2D6 cDNAs was amplificated by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) from a human extratumoral liver tissue and cloned into pGEM-T vector. The cDNA was sequenced. Exons from 1 to 4 of human CYP2D6 cDNAs were also amplificated by RT-PCR from extratumoral liver tissues of 17 human hepatocellular carcinomas. Some RT-PCR products were sequenced. Exons 1 to 4 of CYP2D6 gene were amplified by PCR from extratumoral liver tissue DNA. Two PCR products from extratumoral liver tissues expressing skipped mRNA were partially sequenced.
Results: One of the CYP2D6 cDNAs had 470 nucleotides from 79 to 548 (3' portion of exons 1 to 5' portion of exon 4), and was skipped. Exons 1 to 4 of CYP2D6 cDNA were assayed with RT-PCR in 17 extratumoral liver tissues. Both wild type and skipped mRNAs were expressed in 4 samples, only wild type mRNA was expressed in 5 samples, and only skipped mRNA was expressed in 8 samples. Two more variants were identified by sequencing the RT-PCR products of exons 1 to 4 of CYP2D6 cDNA. The second variant skipped 411 nucleotides from 175 to 585. This variant was identified in 4 different liver tissues by sequencing the RT-PCR products. We sequenced partially 2 of the PCR products amplified of CYP2D6 exon 1 to exon 4 from extratumoral liver tissue genomic DNA that only expressed skipped mRNA by RT-PCR. No point mutations around exon 1, intron 1, and exon 4, and no deletion in CYP2D6 gene were detected. The third variant was the skipped exon 3 , and 153 bp was lost.
Conclusion: Three new alternative splicing variants of CYP2D6 mRNA have been identified. They may not be caused by gene mutation and may lose CYP2D6 activity and act as a down-regulator of CYP2D6.