Transposable Element Insertions Respecify Alternative Exon Splicing in Three Drosophila Myosin Heavy Chain Mutants

Corresponding author: Charles P. Emerson, Jr., Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, 245 Anatomy and Chemistry Bldg., University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadephia, PA 19104-6058., emersonc{at}mail.med.upenn.edu (E-mail).

Communicating editor: L. L. SEARLES

Insertions of transposable elements into the myosin heavy chain (Mhc) locus disrupt the regulation of alternative pre-mRNA splicing for multi-alternative exons in the Mhc2, Mhc3, and Mhc4 mutants in Drosophila. Sequence and expression analyses show that each inserted element introduces a strong polyadenylation signal that defines novel terminal exons, which are then differentially recognized by the alternative splicing apparatus. Mhc2 and Mhc4 have insertion elements located within intron 7c and exon 9a, respectively, and each expresses a single truncated transcript that contains an aberrant terminal exon defined by the poly(A) signal of the inserted element and the 3' acceptor of the upstream common exon. In Mhc3, a poly(A) signal inserted into Mhc intron 7d defines terminal exons using either the upstream 3' acceptor of common exon 6 or the 7d acceptor, leading to the expression of 4.1- and 1.7-kb transcripts, respectively. Acceptor selection is regulated in Mhc3 transcripts, where the 3' acceptor of common Mhc exon 6 is preferentially selected in larvae, whereas the alternative exon 7d acceptor is favored in adults. These results reflect the adult-specific use of exon 7d and suggest that the normal exon 7 alternative splicing mechanism continues to influence the selection of exon 7d in Mhc3 transcripts. Overall, transposable element-induced disruptions in alternative processing demonstrate a role for the nonconsensus 3' acceptors in Mhc exons 7 and 9 alternative splicing regulation.

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