Detection of chimeric alpha-defensin transcripts and peptides in mouse Paneth cells.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

In mammals, Paneth cells, located in the crypts of the small intestine, produceantimicrobial peptides that serve to keep the intestinal microbiome under control. a-Defensins are the primary antimicrobial peptides produced by these cells.

Methods

We used 148 publicly available bulk RNA-seq samples on purified PCs, proteomics on enriched purified PC proteins and Defa peptide activity assays to detect all Defa transcrips, including potential chimeric transcrips.

Results

We identified 28 expressed Defa genes in mice, with up to 85% of Paneth cell RNA reads mapping to these genes. Chimeric mRNAs, involving sequences from two different Defa genes, were detected in most experiments. Despite their low abundance (less than 0.3%), mass s

SUBMITTER: Timmermans S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11840258 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature