Multiple non-coding exons and alternative splicing in the mouse Mas protooncogene

The Meaning of Mas

“…Already at the time of its discovery, the DNA sequence of the MAS gene was determined and shown to encode a protein with a seven-transmembrane domain structure similar to that of GPCR 4. Despite the fact that only one protein is encoded by the gene, we recently demonstrated that the mouse Mas gene with 4 promoters and 12 exons generates at least 12 different mRNAs by alternative splicing at the 5’ untranslated region and is thereby the most complex gene of all GPCRs17. In order to define its ligand, Jackson et al18 expressed MAS in Xenopus oocytes and in a mammalian cell line.…”