The Journal of Nutrition Vol. 127 No. 7 July 1997, pp. 1328-1332
Copyright ©1997 by the American Society for Nutritional Sciences

Gene Expression of Albumin and Liver-Specific Nuclear Transcription Factors in Liver of Protein-Deprived Rats

Manuscript received 22 July 1996. Initial reviews completed 19 August 1996. Revision accepted 2 April 1997.

Department of Surgery II, Osaka University Medical School, Suita, Osaka, 565, Japan

Protein-energy malnutrition causes hypoalbuminemia. Recent work has suggested that this may be partly due to decreased transcription of the albumin gene. This study examined the role of cis-acting and trans-acting elements of the albumin gene during protein deprivation. Male 7-wk-old Donryu rats were fed a protein-free diet (0% casein diet) for 10 d or given restricted (pair-fed control) or free access (freely fed control) to a 25% casein diet. Serum albumin concentrations were significantly lower in the protein-deprived rats (29 ± 1 g/L) than in the pair-fed controls (42 ± 3 g/L) or the freely fed controls (45 ± 3 g/L). The albumin mRNA level was also significantly lower in livers of protein-deprived rats (36% of pair-fed control). However, gel mobility shift analysis using liver nuclear extracts did not show any significant difference between the protein-deprived rats and the pair-fed controls in the binding activity to the B and D sites of the albumin promoter. Furthermore, gel mobility shift-Western blot analysis showed no significant difference between the two groups in the protein levels of nuclear transcription factors binding to the D sites. The amounts of mRNA of hepatocyte nuclear factor-1 binding to the B site were not significantly different between these two groups. These results suggest that the proximal promoter region may not play a major role in the down-regulation of the albumin gene during protein deprivation.

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