The Structural and Functional Properties of a Splice Variant of ADCY7 Gene in Human Pancreatic Cancer

Abstract

Alternative splicing of mRNA precursors is a regulated process of gene expression in eukaryotic cells. It provides cells with the opportunity to create protein isoforms of different functions from a single gene. Cancer cells often take advantage of this process to produce proteins that promote growth and survival. Cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cyclic AMP) is a second messenger that has shown to suppress migration and invasion of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma cells. Cyclic AMP is formed from cytosolic ATP by the enzyme adenylyl cyclase (AC). There are ten isoforms of ACs; nine are anchored in the plasma membrane and one is soluble. Our goal was to find alternative splice variants of transmembrane AC isoforms in pancreatic cancer. We found a possible splice variant of type VII adenylyl cyclase (ADCY7) in human healthy pancreatic, adjacent non-tumor, tumor tissues, two pancreatic cancer cell lines HPAC and PANC-1, epithelial duct cell line PDEC, but not in isolated human pancreatic acini (the exocrine part of the pancreas). Further research will be carried out to study the structural and functional properties of the splice variant of human ADCY7.