Identification of transcripts and translatants targeted by overexpressed PCBP1

PCBP1 is a member of the hnRNP family that functions as a RNA-binding, as well as DNA-binding, protein. The detailed transcripts and translatants targeted by PCBP1 at a global level are not yet known. We undertook an investigation of transcriptional and translational profiles after overexpressing exogenous PCBP1 in SH-SY5Y cells. Our results in two independent studies showed that 601 transcripts, including 26 down-regulated transcripts and 575 up-regulated transcripts, were impacted by overexpression of exogenous PCBP1. However, 138 and 144 transcripts showed non-overlapped differential expression in each study. These altered transcripts are clustered mainly in metabolic and transcriptional regulations. Proteomic profiles detected with a two-dimensional chromatographic PF2D showed a global change of translations, mainly in a range of pI = 4.96–5.76 and pI = 7.96–8.36. Three predominant proteins, which were differentially less expressed in PCBP1 overexpression cells and were detected at pI = 7.96–8.16, were identified as histone proteins, indicating that histone proteins are among the targets regulated by PCBP1. Our investigation has opened a new avenue for further studying the biological functions of PCBP1.