title: Identification, mRNA expression and characterization of a novel ANK-like gene from Chinese mitten crab Eriocheir japonica sinensis.
abstract: Ankyrins are a family of adapter molecules mediating linkages between integral membrane and cytoskeletal proteins. Ankyrin repeat is one of the most frequently observed amino acid motifs in protein databases. A novel ANK-like gene of Chinese mitten crab Eriocheir japonica sinensis (denoted as EjsANK) was identified and cloned by expressed sequence tag and rapid amplification of cDNA end approaches. The full-length cDNA of EjsANK is 4375 bp and contains an open reading frame of 1095 bp which encodes a 364 amino acids polypeptide (40.23 kD) bearing seven ankyrin repeats. EjsANK cDNA has a 3073 bp uniquely long 3' untranslated region with three K-box elements, one GY-like box domain and one Brd-like box domain. Sequence alignment and three-dimensional structural analyses revealed that EjsANK should be a novel cytosolic member of the ankyrin family. Fluorescent real-time quantitative RT-PCR approach was performed to examine the expression profiles of EjsANK mRNA by testing its relative level in three types of tissues at three different developmental stages, respectively. We found that the relative level of EjsANK mRNA expression was significantly higher in the abdomen at the first crab stage. Functional bioinformatics prediction analyses indicated that EjsANK has an analogical effect like IkappaB which is a key component of IkappaB/NF-kappaB complex in mammalian cells playing very important roles in the development process. Results suggest that EjsANK gene is involved in the early developmental regulation of Chinese mitten crab, especially brachyurization regulation.
authors.affiliation: Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Biodiversity and Biotechnology, School of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing 210046, PR China.
authors.forename: Peng
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Jie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zha
authors.forename: Hua
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Zhenhua
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Hongying
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: Daxiang
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Song
authors.forename: Kaiya
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Zhou
mesh_terms: D020413:3' Untranslated Regions; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D017487:Ankyrins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D001483:Base Sequence; D003386:Brachyura / Q000196:embryology / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D005260:Female; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D006801:Humans; D008675:Metamorphosis, Biological; D008958:Models, Molecular; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D014018:Tissue Distribution
chemical_list: D020413:3' Untranslated Regions; D017487:Ankyrins; D012333:RNA, Messenger