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Mapping of Transforming Growth Factor Gene on Human Chromosome 2 Close to the Breakpoint of the Burkitt's Lymphoma t(2;8) Variant Translocation¹

Department of Human Genetics, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut 06510 [J. E. B., U. F.], and Department of Molecular Biology, Genentech, Inc., South San Francisco, California 94080 [R. D.]

Transforming growth factors (TGFs) are defined as biologically active polypeptides which reversibly confer the transformed phenotype onto untransformed cultured cells. TGF- shows sequence homology with epidermal growth factor and competes with epidermal growth factor for binding to the epidermal growth factor receptor, stimulating the phosphorylation of the receptor. TGF- is secreted by many transformed cells and may be involved in embryonic development.

A cloned human TGF- gene was used to map the locus for the TGF- precursor to the short arm of human chromosome 2, region 2p112p13, by Southern blotting techniques with DNA prepared from rodent x human somatic cell hybrids. These hybrids contained different subsets of human chromosomes and included a set with a translocation between human chromosomes 1 and 2 [t(1;2) (q32;q13)]. In situ hybridization of the TGF- probe to normal human metaphase spreads confirmed these data and localized TGF- more precisely to bands 2p112p13. Breakpoints in the variant Burkitt lymphoma translocation t(2;8) occur within these bands. Such a t(2;8) translocation could place TGF- next to c-myc in band 8q24. The possibility is raised that TGF- might contribute to tumor progression in these cases of Burkitt's lymphoma.

¹ This work was supported by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIH Research Grant GM26105).

Received 5/ 7/85. Revised 7/24/85. Accepted 7/29/85.