Testis Expressed Protein 261 (TEX261)

Tex261 is a new gene cloned from a subtractive cDNA library from 10-day postnatal mouse testis. Tex261 transcribes three mRNAs of 3.5, 1.6 and 1.4 kb. The 3.5 kb and 1.4 kb transcripts are expressed in different gonadal and somatic tissues analyzed. However, the 1.6 Kb transcript is only detected in testis and differentially regulated during development. This 1.6 kb mRNA is highly expressed in adult testis, with detection beginning at 15 days of postnatal life, which coincides with the presence of pachytene cells in prepuberal mouse. This expression was confirmed in pachytene cells by run-off transcription assay and by in situ hybridization. A region of 86 amino acids from the predicted Tex261 was recently reported as a part of the steroidogenic acute regulatory protein StAR gene by its sequence identity to a rat StAR cloned cDNA.