Alternative splicing of the porcine glycogen synthase kinase 3beta (GSK-3beta) gene with differential expression patterns and regulatory functions. PLoS One 7: e40250

Background: Glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK3a and GSK3b) are serine/threonine kinases involved in numerous cellular processes and diverse diseases including mood disorders, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, and cancer. However, in pigs, the information on GSK3 is very limited. Identification and characterization of pig GSK3 are not only important for pig genetic improvement, but also contribute to the understanding and development of porcine models for human disease prevention and treatment. Methodology: Five different isoforms of GSK3b were identified in porcine different tissues, in which three isoforms are novel. These isoforms had differential expression patterns in the fetal and adult of the porcine different tissues. The mRNA expression level of GSK3b isoforms was differentially regulated during the course of the insulin treatment, suggesting that different GSK3b isoforms may have different roles in insulin signaling pathway. Moreover, GSK3b5 had a different role on regulating the glycogen synthase activity, phosphorylation and the expression of porcine GYS1 and GYS2 gene compared to other GSK3b isoforms. Conclusions: We are the first to report five different isoforms of GSK3b identified from the porcine different tissues. Splice variants of GSK3b exhibit differential activity towards glycogen synthase. These results provide new insight into roles of th