title: Apparent mitochondrial asymmetry in Xenopus eggs.
abstract: Cell polarity is manifest along the animal/vegetal axis in eggs of the frog, Xenopus laevis. Along this axis, maternal cytoplasmic components are asymmetrically distributed and are thought to underlie specification of distinct cell fates. To ascertain the molecular identities of such cytoplasmic components, we have used a monoclonal antibody that specifically stains the vegetal hemisphere of Xenopus eggs. The antigenic protein Vp67 (vegetal protein of 67 kDa) was identified through purification and cloning as a Xenopus homolog of the mitochondrial protein dihydrolipoamide acetyltransferase, a component of the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex. The identification of Vp67 as a mitochondrial protein could indicate that populations of mitochondria are asymmetrically distributed in Xenopus eggs.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and Biochemistry, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island 02912, USA.
authors.forename: Natalia
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Volodina
authors.forename: James M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Denegre
authors.forename: Kimberly L
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Mowry
mesh_terms: D000123:Acetyltransferases / Q000032:analysis; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D000918:Antibody Specificity; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D003593:Cytoplasm / Q000201:enzymology; D051047:Dihydrolipoyllysine-Residue Acetyltransferase; D005260:Female; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D015971:Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic; D008928:Mitochondria / Q000502:physiology*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009865:Oocytes / Q000166:cytology / Q000201:enzymology*; D011768:Pyruvate Dehydrogenase Complex / Q000032:analysis / Q000235:genetics; D029867:Xenopus Proteins / Q000032:analysis / Q000235:genetics*; D014982:Xenopus laevis / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D011768:Pyruvate Dehydrogenase Complex; C479881:Vp67 protein, Xenopus; D029867:Xenopus Proteins; D000123:Acetyltransferases; D051047:Dihydrolipoyllysine-Residue Acetyltransferase