Sex-, tissue-, and stage-specific expression of a vitelline membrane protein gene from region 32 of the second chromosome of Drosophila melanogaster.
This study isolated cDNA clones from egg-chamber and adult female Drosophila cDNA libraries using as probe a DNA fragment from a 200-kb "chromosome walk" in region 32E of the second chromosome of D. melanogaster. The present authors believe that these clones correspond to a new vitelline membrane protein (VMP) gene because 1) cDNA clones in Northern blots identify a transcript expressed in a tissue- and stage-specific manner: stage 10 egg-chambers; 2) the sequence of cDNAs and of the genomic subclone shows homology with the other VMP genes that have been identified to date; 3) the amino acid composition of the translational product has the high content of proline and alanine characteristic of VMPs. Two aspects emerging from this study are worth stressing: 1) the presence of a hydrophobic domain that is highly conserved in all the VMP genes; and 2) the particularly narrow period of expression of the isolated gene, which could be related to the mechanism of vitelline membrane assembly.
Gigliotti
S
S
Istituto Internazionale di Genetica e Biofisica, CNR, Università di Napoli, Italy.
Graziani
F
F
De Ponti
L
L
Rafti
F
F
Manzi
A
A
Lavorgna
G
G
Gargiulo
G
G
Malva
C
C
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D015152:Blotting, Northern; D002874:Chromosome Mapping; D004331:Drosophila melanogaster / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development; D004527:Egg Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D005796:Genes; D008297:Male; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009693:Nucleic Acid Hybridization; D015183:Restriction Mapping; D012737:Sex Factors; D014158:Transcription, Genetic
D004527:Egg Proteins; C035651:vitelline membrane proteins