Cloning and sequencing of the cDNAs encoding two alternative splicing-derived variants of the alpha subunit of the granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor receptor.

Two distinct cDNA clones, corresponding to alternative mRNA splicing variants of the alpha subunit of the granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor receptor (GM-CSF-R alpha) were isolated from human blood mononuclear cells by RT-PCR. The first one lacks 179 bp, and the second one lacks 136 bp of the major variant, GM-CSF-R alpha 1. Both of variants result in shifts in the reading frame and are expected to encode 377- and 285-amino-acid membrane anchoring and soluble receptor isoforms, respectively.