CDNA CLONING OF A MOUSE FACTOR THAT ACTIVATES TRANSCRIPTION FROM A METAL RESPONSE ELEMENT OF THE MOUSE METALLOTHIONEIN-I GENE IN YEAST

A cDNA that encodes a mouse factor that activates expression from a metal response element of the mouse metallothionein-I gene has been isolated by complementation cloning in yeast cells. The cDNA encodes a peptide with a maximum length of 99 amino acids that includes a single zinc finger sequence. In yeast cells, the cloned factor induces transcription from the metal response element in a sequence-specific but metal-independent fashion. The cDNA hybridizes to a 550-base mRNA that is constitutively expressed in mouse tissue culture cells. The ability of the mouse factor to activate transcription in yeast cells is dependent upon the carbon source.