Expression of the delta-crystallin genes in the embryonic chicken lens.

The amounts of lens mRNA derived from the delta 1- and delta 2-crystallin genes of the chicken were determined by primer extension experiments using gene-specific synthetic oligonucleotides. The primer extended products were sequenced to establish the identity of the resulting cDNAs. The results indicated that most of the delta-crystallin mRNA in the 14-day-old embryonic lens contained transcripts derived from the delta 1 gene. Importantly, however, about 1-2% of the extended products were derived from delta 2 mRNA. Although not quantitative, the primer extension experiments suggested that the delta 1/delta 2 mRNA ratio may differ in the lens fiber cells during development between 6 days of embryogenesis and 3 weeks after hatching. These data provide the first demonstration for the presence of delta 2-crystallin mRNA in the chicken lens and raise the possibility that the two linked, extremely similar delta-crystallin genes are differentially regulated during development.