The c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase3 (JNK3) gene: genomic structure, chromosomal assignment, and loss of expression in brain tumors.

By examining 19 human cell lines derived from brain tumors for altered expression of expressed sequence tags (ESTs) in chromosomal band 4q21-22, we detected loss of expression, in 10 cell lines, of two sequences, WI6336 and WI7913. Both corresponded to the c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase (JNK) 3. In the present study, genomic cloning revealed that the JNK3 gene consists of 14 exons interrupted by 13 introns; its transcription-initiation site is within exon 3 and the termination codon lies in exon 14. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and radiation-hybrid mapping confirmed the gene to 4q21-22. Together with prior evidence that, in JNK3-deficient mice, the JNK3 signaling pathway mediates apoptosis in central nervous tissue, our results suggest that loss of expression of the JNK3 gene may play an important role in the development of brain tumors in humans.