pAP1(PMA)-TA-Luc is a member of the signal transduction reporter vectors. It is designed for
monitoring the induction of the protein kinase C (PKC) signal transduction pathway, as well as related
pathways such as the MAPK pathway. pAP1(PMA)-TA-Luc contains the firefly luciferase gene (luc)
as the reporter. The vector contains multiple copies of the activator protein 1 (AP1) enhancer, located
upstream of luc, that responds specifically to phorbol ester treatment (1). AP1(PMA) is fused to a
minimal TA promoter, the TATA box from the Herpes simplex virus thymidine kinase (HSV-TK) promoter.
The luciferase coding sequence is followed by the SV40 late polyadenylation signal to ensure proper,
efficient processing of the luciferase transcript in eukaryotic cells. A synthetic transcription blocker (TB)
is located upstream of AP1(PMA), which is composed of adjacent polyadenylation and transcription
pause sites for blocking nonspecific transcription (2). The vector backbone also contains an f1 origin
for single-stranded DNA production, a pUC origin of replication, and an ampicillin resistance gene
for propagation and selection in E. coli.
