| Description: | Cytosolic sulfotransferases (STs or SULTs) catalyze the sulfate conjugation of many drugs, xenobiotic compounds, hormones, and neurotransmitters. Her et al. (1998) identified an EST with homology to ST enzymes. By PCR with human placental and prostate cDNA as template, they isolated 2 alternatively spliced cDNAs, identical throughout most of their sequences, but having different 5-prime ends. The shorter cDNA, SULT2B1a, encodes a protein of 350 amino acids; the longer cDNA, SULT2B1b, encodes a 365-amino acid protein. Genomic PCR analysis revealed that the gene encoding both cDNAs, SULT2B1, contains 7 exons, with 2 alternative first exons being used to generate SULT2B1a and SULT2B1b. Northern blot analysis revealed that the SULT2B1 gene is expressed as a 1.4-kb transcript predominantly in prostate, placenta, and trachea. |
