Expression of Rat α2-Macroglobulin Gene during Pregnancy

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Abstract
Rat α2-macroglobulin (α2,M) is a typical acute phase protein, the concentration of which in serum increases more than 100-fold after inflammation. It is also known that the protein increases during pregnant (and neonatal) stages. Using a specific cDNA probe, expression of the α2M gene during pregnancy was studied at the mRNA level. During inflammation, the liver is almost the only organ producing α2M, but during pregnancy the placenta and uterus were found to be major organs producing a large amount (70–80% of that of inflamed liver) of α2M mRNA at days 12–15. The yolk sac, maternal liver and fetal (or neonatal) liver also produced a small but significant amount (5–20% of that of inflamed liver) of the mRNA. Southern blotting analysis showed that only one copy of the α2M gene was present in a haploid rat genome. These results indicated that a single α2M gene has the ability to respond to two completely-different physiological states.