title: Analysis of a new type of major ampullate spider silk gene, MaSp1s.
abstract: Spider dragline silk, which is secreted from the major ampullate silk glands, is a unique fibrous protein with a combination of tensile strength and elasticity. Here, we describe a new short type of dragline silk gene, Cyrtophora moluccensis MaSp1s. The full-length gene is only 1320 base pairs (bp), which encodes 439 amino acids that includes the intact non-repetitive N-terminal (149 residues), C-terminal (98 residues) and so-called repetitive regions (192 residues); the deduced molecular weight is approximately 40 kDa. The sequence analysis demonstrated that the two termini are highly homologous to the other characterized dragline silk genes but that the so-called repetitive region is different. Our results suggest that MaSp1s is a possible new characteristic dragline gene; the discovery of this gene should enhance our understanding of the major ampullate spider silk genes.
authors: Division of Applied Biology, Faculty of Textile Science and Technology, Shinshu University, Ueda, Nagano 386-8567, Japan.
authors: Leng
authors: L
authors: Han
authors: Lei
authors: L
authors: Zhang
authors: Tianfu
authors: T
authors: Zhao
authors: Yujun
authors: Y
authors: Wang
authors: Masao
authors: M
authors: Nakagaki
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000596:Amino Acids / Q000378:metabolism; D000825:Animal Structures / Q000378:metabolism*; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D003062:Codon / Q000235:genetics; D004591:Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D005349:Fibroins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D017344:Genes, Insect / Q000235:genetics*; D057927:Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D014176:Protein Biosynthesis; D021382:Protein Sorting Signals; D020449:Repetitive Sequences, Amino Acid; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D013112:Spiders / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D000596:Amino Acids; D003062:Codon; D021382:Protein Sorting Signals; C086087:spidroin 1; D005349:Fibroins