Molecular cloning, characterization and evolution of the gene encoding a new group of short‐chain α‐neurotoxins in an Australian elapid, Pseudonaja textilis

FEBS Letters

Jeyaseelan, Kandiah¹  Armugam, Arunmozhiarasi¹  Gong, NanLing¹ 

[1] Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 10 Medical Drive, Singapore 119260, Singapore

关键词: α-Neurotoxin;    Gene structure;    Organization;    Molecular evolution;    Pseudonaja textilis;   

DOI  :  10.1016/S0014-5793(00)01549-0

学科分类：生物化学/生物物理

来源: John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

【 摘 要 】

The structure and organization of five genes responsible for the synthesis of six isoforms of short-chain α-neurotoxins in Pseudonaja textilis venom are reported in this paper. This also forms the first report which describes the synthesis of two neurotoxin mRNA variants from one of these genes (Pt-sntx1) as a result of alternative splicing. Each gene consists of three exons which are separated by two introns and each has a functional promoter. The promoter activity was confirmed by both CAT assay and Real-Time PCR. A transcription initiation site, two putative TATA boxes, one CCAAT box and the transcription factor binding consensus sites for AP-1, GATA-2, c/EBPb were identified in the 5′ non-coding region of each gene. Phylogenetic analysis showed that these five genes from P. textilis constituted a distinct group which has evolved by gene duplication followed by accelerated evolution from an ancestral gene.

【 授权许可】

Unknown