Cloning and Activity of Mouse Ultra-High Sulfur Keratin Gene Promoter

The study aimed to identify and clone the ultra-high sulfur keratin promoter (UHS) in mouse hair follicles to support the development of transgenic techniques for hair-specific expression of exogenous proteins. Researchers cloned the UHS promoter using genomic DNA from mice and constructed a recombinant eukaryotic expression vector. They transfected mouse skin tissue with plasmids containing the UHS promoter linked to GFP and β-galactosidase. Results showed GFP expression in the hair follicle region 48 hours after transfection, which decreased by 96 hours. Additionally, β-galactosidase activity was observed as blue staining in the hair follicle region at 48 hours. The study concluded that the UHS promoter was a tissue-specific promoter in mouse hair follicles.