Tg(GFAP-B2m,GFAP-H2-K^b)1Gjh

Two transgene constructs were co-injected, each containing the promoter of the glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) gene upstream of DNA encoding either the mouse H2-Kb (MHC class I) molecule or mouse beta-2 microglobulin. Southern blot analysis demonstrates integration of both constructs on the same chromosome. Hybridization of allele-specific H2-K probes to reverse transcription- (RT-) PCR products detects H2-Kb transcripts only in brain, despite expression in other tissues of H2-Kd mRNA from the endogenous gene. H2-K allele-specific antibodies detect the H2-Kb protein on astrocytes and oligodendrocytes in cerebellar-cell culture. Immunohistologic analysis of brain sections detects H2-Kb in ependymal cells and in some choroid plexus epithelial cells. Immunohistologic examination of other sectioned organs finds H2-Kb only in intestine, specifically in Schwann cells of autonomic ganglia in the intestinal wall. No H2-Kb mRNA or protein is expressed in thymus. (J:134775)