title: Cloning and characterization of the pineal gland-specific opsin gene of marine lamprey (Petromyzon marinus).
abstract: We have cloned and sequenced the pineal gland-specific opsin (P opsin) gene, p(Pm), of marine lamprey, P. marinus. The deduced P opsin, P(Pm), consisting of 444 aa, is about 90 aa longer than the orthologous opsins of chicken, pigeon, and American chameleon. The evolution of P(Pm) is characterized not only by a significantly higher rate of aa replacement than the other P opsins but also by a larger number of unique aa replacements at highly conserved sites in the nonTM region. These changes in P(Pm) might have been important in achieving marine lamprey-specific interaction between P(Pm) and other proteins in the pineal gland.
authors.affiliation: Syracuse University, Department of Biology, NY 13244, USA. syokoyam@mailbox.syr.edu
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yokoyama
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D019943:Amino Acid Substitution / Q000235:genetics; D000818:Animals; D030161:Avian Proteins; D001483:Base Sequence; D002645:Chickens; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D010856:Columbidae; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D006801:Humans; D007798:Lampreys / Q000235:genetics*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D010802:Phylogeny; D010870:Pineal Gland / Q000737:chemistry*; D017299:Rod Opsins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D012474:Salmon; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid
chemical_list: D030161:Avian Proteins; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; D017299:Rod Opsins; C090139:OPNP protein, chicken