[hGH and molecular biology].

This review summarizes the progress recently made through the approaches provided by DNA recombinant technology in the knowledge of the human growth hormone (hGH) gene and of the molecular basis of hGH deficiencies. The growth hormone gene is part of a family of five structural genes located on the long arm of human chromosome 17, over a distance of 55 kilobases (kb), and oriented in the same transcriptional 5' to 3' direction in the order 5' hGH-N, hCS-L, hCS-A, hGH-V, and hCS-B 3'. The five genes contain five exons interrupted by four introns, and they display a high sequence homology. GH and CS genes show class differences on their 3' side, approximately 100 base pairs beyond the polyadenylation sites. Analysis of homology regions has permitted to define duplication units useful to trace the evolution process of the cluster. The hGH-N gene codes for the normal, pituitary, 22K human growth hormone. The hGH-V genes codes for a variant peptide that can be expressed in vitro in transgenomic systems, but that is not known to be expressed in vivo. The hCS-A and -B genes each code for human chorionic somatomammotropin. They specify the same mature hormone and are expressed at different levels in term placenta. The hCS-L gene appears to be an unexpressed pseudogene and has a single base substitution, located in a splicing site, that would preclude normal mRNA maturation.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)