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Nucleotide sequence of a macronuclear gene for actin in Oxytricha fallax

Nature volume 295, pages 430–432 (1982)Cite this article

Abstract

The hypotrichous ciliated protozoan Oxytricha fallax possesses a mechanism for processing its genome into a collection of small, gene-sized, transcriptionally active sections. Macronuclear DNA is arranged as short achromosomal sections, 0.5–22 kilo-base pairs (kbp) long, while micronuclear DNA has a typical chromosomal organization1,2. Macronuclear DNA is derived from micronuclear DNA by a process of polytene chromosome fragmentation with a resultant decrease in DNA sequence complexity3,4. The isolation of intact macronuclear DNA sections enables the study of specific structural units of genetic material that occur naturally in the organism. We have previously described5 the construction of a recombinant plasmid, pOfACT (1.6), which contains an intact 1.6-kb length of macronuclear DNA (Fig. 1) homologous to a yeast actin gene6. We now present the complete nucleotide sequence of the cloned DNA molecule and the derived sequence of the actin protein which it encodes. As the sequence is that of a complete, naturally occurring DNA molecule, it shows all cis-active regulatory regions in addition to the coding region. The actin protein encoded differs considerably from other known actins.

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Author notes

  1. Brian P. Kaine

    Present address: Department of Genetics and Development, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois, 61801, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Section of Biological Sciences, Department of Biochemistry, Molecular and Cell Biology, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, 60201, USA

    Brian P. Kaine & Brian B. Spear

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  1. Brian P. Kaine
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  2. Brian B. Spear
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Kaine, B., Spear, B. Nucleotide sequence of a macronuclear gene for actin in Oxytricha fallax. Nature 295, 430–432 (1982). https://doi.org/10.1038/295430a0

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