Molecular cloning of the human esterase D gene, a genetic marker of retinoblastoma.

Retinoblastoma, the most common intraocular tumor, represents one of the prototypes of inheritable cancers. To elucidate the mechanisms that give rise to this tumor, the retinoblastoma gene (RB) must be molecularly cloned. The difficulty encountered in cloning the gene is that little of its function or structure is known. The human esterase D gene, on the other hand, has been localized cytogenetically to the same sub-band of chromosome 13q14:11 as the RB gene. The esterase D gene thus provides a convenient starting point for cloning the RB gene. In this communication, we describe the isolation of the esterase D cDNA clone. Its identification is based on three lines of evidence. This cDNA encodes a protein immunologically related to the esterase D protein. The deduced amino acid sequences of this clone contain sequences identical to the three CNBr-cleaved peptides of the esterase D protein. This clone is mapped to the chromosome 13q14 region by Southern genomic blotting using different deletion mutants. The availability of this clone should allow for the cloning of the RB gene by chromosome walking; the diagnosis of genetic defects such as retinoblastomas and Wilson disease, whose genes are closely linked to the esterase D gene; and the exploration of the large family of human esterase genes.