Cloning, Embryonic Expression, and Alternative Splicing of a Murine Kidney-specific Na-K-Cl Cotransporter

A full-length cDNA encoding the murine renal Na-K-Cl cotransporter (NKCC2) was cloned using library screening and anchored polymerase chain reaction. The deduced protein sequence contained 1,095 amino acids and was 93.5% identical to rabbit NKCC2 and 97.6% identical to rat BSC1. Two potential sites of phosphorylation by adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate-dependent protein kinase and seven potential sites of phosphorylation by protein kinase C, which were previously identified in the rabbit and rat sequences, were phylogenetically conserved in the mouse. The expression of NKCC2 in the mouse was examined with Northern blot analysis and in situ hybridization. Expression of NKCC2 was kidney specific in both adult and embryonic mice. In the developing metanephros, NKCC2 was induced at 14.5 days post coitus and was expressed in distal limbs of immature loops of Henle but was absent from the ureteric bud, S-shaped bodies, and earlier nephrogenic structures. Similar to the rabbit, isoforms of NKCC2 that differed in the sequence of a 96-bp segment were identified in the mouse. In situ hybridization revealed that the isoforms exhibited different patterns of expression in the mature thick ascending limb of the loop of Henle as follows: isoform F was most highly expressed in the inner stripe of outer medulla, isoform A was most highly expressed in the outer stripe of the outer medulla, and isoform B was most highly expressed in the cortical thick ascending limb. To verify that the isoforms were generated by alternative splicing of mutually exclusive cassette exons, genomic clones encoding murine NKCC2 were characterized. Cassette exons were identified that corresponded to each of the three isoforms and were flanked by consensus splice donor and acceptor sequences.