title: Putative Drosophila pheromone-binding proteins expressed in a subregion of the olfactory system.
abstract: Four genes expressed in the olfactory system of Drosophila melanogaster have been identified by subtractive hybridization. Two of these genes, OS-E and OS-F, are related to genes encoding moth pheromone-binding proteins. The OS-E and OS-F genes are tightly linked and are expressed in a subregion of the antenna (the primary olfactory organ). A protein sequence analysis suggests the possibility that pheromone-binding proteins are members of a larger class of proteins, extending beyond the olfactory system. The predicted product of a third gene, OS-D, shares features common to vertebrate odorant-binding proteins, but has a primary structure unlike odorant-binding proteins. The fourth gene, OS-C, encodes a novel 13-kDa protein that contains a putative nuclear import sequence and an acid-rich region. The expression patterns of these genes differ within the antenna; their transcript distributions support the notion of specialized roles for different olfactory sensilla. The functions of the OS gene products have not been demonstrated; however, the potential identification of pheromone-binding proteins in Drosophila, a species with well characterized genetics, may offer a means of analyzing the function of these molecules that is not available in other systems.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06511-8112.
authors.forename: M P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: McKenna
authors.forename: D S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Hekmat-Scafe
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Gaines
authors.forename: J R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Carlson
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D002352:Carrier Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D002628:Chemoreceptor Cells / Q000502:physiology*; D002874:Chromosome Mapping; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D004331:Drosophila melanogaster / Q000235:genetics*; D017344:Genes, Insect / Q000235:genetics*; D008040:Genetic Linkage; D017403:In Situ Hybridization; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010675:Pheromones / Q000378:metabolism*; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D012903:Smell / Q000235:genetics*; D014018:Tissue Distribution
chemical_list: D002352:Carrier Proteins; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; C087695:Obp83a protein, Drosophila; C087694:Obp83b protein, Drosophila; D010675:Pheromones; C109787:a10 protein, Drosophila