Expression and regulation of pOb24 and lipoprotein lipase genes during adipose conversion.

Lipoprotein lipase (LPL) and pOb24 mRNAs are known to be early markers of adipose cell differentiation. Comparative studies of the expression of pOb24 and LPL genes during adipose conversion of Ob1771 preadipocyte cells and in mouse adipose tissue have shown the following: 1) the expression of both genes takes place at confluence; this event can also be triggered by growth arrest of exponentially growing cells at the G1/S stage of the cell cycle; 2) In contrast to glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase mRNA, the emergence of pOb24 and lipoprotein lipase mRNAs requires neither growth hormone or tri-iodothyronine as obligatory hormones nor insulin as a modulating hormone; 3) in mouse adipose tissue, pOb24 mRNA is present at a high level in stromal-vascular cells and at a low level in mature adipocytes, and in contrast LPL mRNAs are preferentially expressed in mature adipocytes. Thus, these two genes do not appear to be regulated in a similar manner, as also shown by the differential inhibition of their expression by tumor necrosis factor (TNF) and transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta).