title: Phosphorylated epitopes of neurofilaments have been conserved during chordate evolution.
abstract: We have characterized some rabbit polyclonal responses as strictly specific for phosphorylated epitopes located in the carboxyterminal (tail) domain of the H or the M subunits of mammalian neurofilaments. These antibodies have been used to confirm the occurrence in lizard neurofilaments of a single heavy subunit cross-reacting with both H and M from mammals. A heavy subunit with similar cross-reactivity has been detected in neurofilaments preparations from fishes, whereas more primitive Chordata possess a HMW polypeptide cross-reacting with only the M subunit. We could also demonstrate in frog spinal cord two distinct heavy subunits cross-reacting with either the M or the H subunit from mammals, a fact which suggests a convergent evolution for phosphorylated epitopes of neurofilaments.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000918:Antibody Specificity; D005075:Biological Evolution; D002816:Chordata, Nonvertebrate / Q000276:immunology*; D003599:Cytoskeleton / Q000276:immunology*; D000939:Epitopes / Q000032:analysis*; D005399:Fishes; D007382:Intermediate Filaments / Q000276:immunology*; D010766:Phosphorylation; D011817:Rabbits; D011893:Rana esculenta; D051381:Rats
chemical_list: D000939:Epitopes