Glucocorticoids regulate the transcription of glycerol phosphate dehydrogenase in cultured glial cells.

Utilizing a glycerol phosphate dehydrogenase cDNA clone from the rat glioma C6 cell line, we report that the glucocorticoid regulation of glycerol phosphate dehydrogenase gene expression in glial cells occurs at the transcriptional level. Furthermore, our transcription results in vitro, as well as Northern blot analysis, show that the short-chain fatty acid, sodium butyrate, totally blocks this hydrocortisone-induced transcription of glycerol phosphate dehydrogenase, demonstrating that the site of action of this fatty acid resides in the cell nucleus. The C6 glycerol phosphate dehydrogenase cDNA clone (pGPDH-1,1800 base pairs) used in these studies was selected from a C6 library generated from polysomal poly(A)+ RNA. pGPDH-1 hybridized to a 4.7-kilobase RNA from rat muscle and brain, mouse liver, and C6 cells; this mRNA is at least four times larger than the required coding sequence for glycerol phosphate dehydrogenase. Northern blot analysis of developing rat brain reveals a striking increase in glycerol phosphate dehydrogenase transcripts during the period most associated with peak myelination.