Detection of mouse skeletal muscle-specific product, which includes ZF5 zinc fingers and a VP16 acidic domain, by reverse transcriptase PCR.

ZF5, which we have cloned as a repressor on the mouse c-myc promoter, is a zinc finger protein containing Kruppel-type zinc finger and ZiN/POZ domains. In a reverse transcriptase PCR assay using mouse skeletal muscle RNA, we identified a 827 bp PCR product including the zinc finger domain of ZF5 and the acidic domain of VP16. The presence of the VP16 acidic domain induced the reduction of DNA-binding activity of the zinc finger domain. In addition, the inhibitory effect of the VP16 acidic domain was demonstrated on the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) promoter, but there was no effect on the thymidine kinase (TK) promoter.