A cloned calmodulin structural gene probe is complementary to DNA sequences from diverse species

Electrophorus electricus as a model system for the study of membrane excitability

The stunning sensations produced by electric fish, particularly the electric eel, Electrophorus electricus, have fascinated scientists for centuries. Within the last 50 years, however, electric cells of Electrophorus have provided a unique model system that is both specialized and appropriate for the study of excitable cell membrane electrophysiology and biochemistry. Electric tissue generates whole animal electrical discharges by means of membrane potentials that are remarkably similar to those of mammalian neurons, myocytes and secretory cells. Electrocytes express ion channels, ATPases and signal transduction proteins common to these other excitable cells. Action potentials of electrocytes represent the specialized end function of electric tissue whereas other excitable cells use membrane potential changes to trigger sophisticated cellular processes, such as myofilament cross-bridging for contraction, or exocytosis for secretion. Because electric tissue lacks these functions and the proteins associated with them, it provides a highly specialized membrane model system. This review examines the basic mechanisms involved in the generation of the electrical discharge of the electric eel and the membrane proteins involved. The valuable contributions that electric tissue continues to make toward the understanding of excitable cell physiology and biochemistry are summarized, particularly those studies using electrocytes as a model system for the study of the regulation of membrane excitability by second messengers and signal transduction pathways.

Substitution at position 116 of Schizosaccharomyces pombe calmodulin decreases its stability under nitrogen starvation and results in a sporulation-deficient phenotype

We constructed Schizosaccharomyces pombe strains that carry phenylalanine, instead of arginine, as residue 116 of calmodulin by site-directed mutagenesis of the cam1 gene. Whereas haploid strains carrying the mutant allele, designated cam1-F116, exhibit no defects in growth and mating, diploid strains homozygous for cam1-F116 are deficient in sporulation. The four nuclei generated by the two serial meiotic divisions are not encapsulated in these diploids. The mutation is recessive. Semiquantitative analysis using polyclonal antibodies showed that vegetatively growing cam1-F116 cells have a smaller amount of calmodulin than wild-type cells. The quantitative difference becomes more remarkable if the cells are starved for nitrogen, which is a condition for induction of sporulation. In addition to this in vivo observation, we showed in vitro that the mutant protein is susceptible to a proteolytic activity induced by nitrogen starvation that hardly affects the wild-type calmodulin. Thus, the sporulation deficiency of the cam1-F116 mutant may be ascribed to shortage of calmodulin due to proteolysis of the mutant molecules under nitrogen starvation. Two other mutations at position 116 resulted in similar but leakier Spo- phenotypes.

Molecular cloning and sequencing of a cDNA for plant calmodulin: signal-induced changes in the expression of calmodulin

A cDNA clone (pPCM-1) for plant calmodulin was isolated by screening a potato stolon tip cDNA library with a chicken calmodulin cDNA. Nucleotide sequence analysis of pPCM-1 revealed that it contained 80 base pairs of 5' untranslated region, the entire coding region, and 376 base pairs of 3' untranslated region. Comparison of the nucleotide sequence of coding regions of potato and chicken calmodulin mRNA showed 78% homology. Comparison of the predicted amino acid sequence of potato calmodulin with other known calmodulin sequences indicated a high degree of homology with a few exceptions. Three changes in the amino acid sequence were found to be unique to the potato calmodulin sequence. In our earlier studies we showed the involvement of calcium and calmodulin in potato tuberization. The pPCM-1 clone was used as a probe to study the expression of calmodulin mRNA during tuberization and to monitor calmodulin mRNA level in various parts of the potato plant. Stolon tips showed the highest levels of calmodulin mRNA, suggesting a role for calmodulin in the tuberization process. In addition, pPCM-1 was used to investigate the effect of auxin and light on calmodulin gene expression in auxin-responsive strawberry fruit and light-responsive Merit corn roots, respectively. Both auxin and light signals were found to increase the level of mRNA for calmodulin. These results suggest that the altered calmodulin gene expression could be one of the molecular events involved in the signal transduction process in plants.

Multiple calmodulin mRNA species are derived from two distinct genes

We have observed three calmodulin mRNA species in rat tissues. In order to know from how many expressed genes they are derived, we have investigated the genomic organization of calmodulin genes in the rat genome. From a rat brain cDNA library, we obtained two kinds of cDNAs (pRCM1 and pRCM3) encoding authentic calmodulin. DNA sequence analysis of these cDNA clones revealed substitutions of nucleotides at 73 positions of 450 nucleotides in the coding region, although the amino acid sequences of these calmodulins are exactly the same. DNA sequences in the 5' and 3' noncoding regions are quite different between these two cDNAs. From these results, we conclude that they are derived from two distinct bona fide calmodulin genes, CaMI (pRCM1) and CaMII (pRCM3). Total genomic Southern hybridization suggested four distinct calmodulin-related genes in the rat genome. By cloning and sequencing the calmodulin-related genes from rat genomic libraries, we demonstrated that the other two genes are processed pseudogenes generated from the CaMI (lambda SC9) and CaMII (lambda SC8) genes, respectively, through an mRNA-mediated process of insertions. Northern blotting showed that the CaMI gene is transcribed in liver, muscle, and brain in similar amounts, whereas the CaMII gene is transcribed mainly in brain. S1 nuclease mapping indicated that the CaMI gene produced two mRNA species (1.7 and 4 kilobases), whereas the CaMII gene expressed a single mRNA species (1.4 kilobases).

Analysis and in vivo disruption of the gene coding for calmodulin in Schizosaccharomyces pombe

Calmodulin is a low molecular weight calcium-binding protein that modulates many enzyme systems in eukaryotes. We have cloned the gene encoding calmodulin from the fission yeast, Schizosaccharomyces pombe, by using synthetic oligonucleotide probes that correspond to three distinct regions of Tetrahymena calmodulin. A 1.6-kilobase (kb) DNA fragment that hybridized to all of them contains a gene whose deduced product possesses 74% amino acid homology with bovine calmodulin. This gene, which is unique in the S. pombe genome and is named cam1, encodes 149 amino acids excluding the first methionine and is transcribed into mRNA of 1.2-kb length. It has an intron that apparently starts immediately after the initiation codon and is 126 bp long. S. pombe calmodulin exhibits more homology to vertebrate calmodulin than to that of the budding yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Gene disruption experiments revealed that cam1 gene function is essential for vegetative growth of S. pombe. Spores bearing disrupted cam1 halt growth soon after germination and rarely carry out the first cell division, indicating that calmodulin does not exist in excess in those cells.

Multiple calmodulin mRNA species are derived from two distinct genes

We have observed three calmodulin mRNA species in rat tissues. In order to know from how many expressed genes they are derived, we have investigated the genomic organization of calmodulin genes in the rat genome. From a rat brain cDNA library, we obtained two kinds of cDNAs (pRCM1 and pRCM3) encoding authentic calmodulin. DNA sequence analysis of these cDNA clones revealed substitutions of nucleotides at 73 positions of 450 nucleotides in the coding region, although the amino acid sequences of these calmodulins are exactly the same. DNA sequences in the 5' and 3' noncoding regions are quite different between these two cDNAs. From these results, we conclude that they are derived from two distinct bona fide calmodulin genes, CaMI (pRCM1) and CaMII (pRCM3). Total genomic Southern hybridization suggested four distinct calmodulin-related genes in the rat genome. By cloning and sequencing the calmodulin-related genes from rat genomic libraries, we demonstrated that the other two genes are processed pseudogenes generated from the CaMI (lambda SC9) and CaMII (lambda SC8) genes, respectively, through an mRNA-mediated process of insertions. Northern blotting showed that the CaMI gene is transcribed in liver, muscle, and brain in similar amounts, whereas the CaMII gene is transcribed mainly in brain. S1 nuclease mapping indicated that the CaMI gene produced two mRNA species (1.7 and 4 kilobases), whereas the CaMII gene expressed a single mRNA species (1.4 kilobases).

Structure and expression of the Drosophila calmodulin gene

We have isolated and characterized cDNA and genomic clones representing the calmodulin gene of Drosophila melanogaster. As demonstrated by genomic blots and by reconstruction experiments, the calmodulin gene is represented once in the Drosophila genome. In situ hybridization of cloned probes to the polytene chromosomes of third instar larvae permitted the localization of the gene to region 49A on the left arm of the second chromosome. Two transcripts of 1.65 and 1.9 kb are produced from this gene. The accumulation of calmodulin message was measured at several stages of Drosophila development. The results of these experiments suggest developmental regulation of the gene. Three intervening sequences interrupt the protein coding nucleotides and two of these are located within calmodulin functional domains. The DNA sequence encoding the protein is presented; the derived amino acid sequence is compared to that of other species. The structural similarities of the Drosophila calmodulin gene to calmodulin genes of other species and to other calcium binding protein genes are discussed.

Eel electric organ: hyperexpressing calmodulin system

The electroplax of the electric eel Electrophorus electricus is the most abundant source of the calcium-binding protein calmodulin. The electroplax has 250 times the amount of calmodulin and its mRNA than eel skeletal muscle. Our data suggest that there is no major difference in gene copies, the degree of methylation, or genome rearrangement of the calmodulin gene in DNAs from eel electroplax and muscle. Differences in the calmodulin-binding proteins in electroplax and muscle suggest a differential role for the functional expression of calmodulin in cellular regulation.

Eel electric organ: hyperexpressing calmodulin system

The electroplax of the electric eel Electrophorus electricus is the most abundant source of the calcium-binding protein calmodulin. The electroplax has 250 times the amount of calmodulin and its mRNA than eel skeletal muscle. Our data suggest that there is no major difference in gene copies, the degree of methylation, or genome rearrangement of the calmodulin gene in DNAs from eel electroplax and muscle. Differences in the calmodulin-binding proteins in electroplax and muscle suggest a differential role for the functional expression of calmodulin in cellular regulation.

Molecular cloning of alpha-amylase genes from Drosophila melanogaster. I. Clone isolation by use of a mouse probe

A cloned alpha-amylase cDNA sequence from the mouse is homologous to a small set of DNA sequences from Drosophila melanogaster under appropriate conditions of hybridization. A number of recombinant lambda phage that carry homologous Drosophila genomic DNA sequences were isolated using the mouse clone as a hybridization probe. Putative amylase clones hybridized in situ to one or the other of two distinct sites in polytene chromosome 2R and were assigned to one of two classes, A and B. Clone lambda Dm32, representing class A, hybridizes within chromosome section 53CD. Clone lambda Dm65 of class B hybridizes within section 54A1-B1. Clone lambda Dm65 is homologous to a 1450- to 1500-nucleotide RNA species, which is sufficiently long to code for alpha-amylase. No RNA homologous to lambda Dm32 was detected. We suggest that the class B clone, lambda Dm65, contains the functional Amy structural gene(s) and that class A clones contain an amylase pseudogene.

Calmodulin genes in trypanosomes are tandemly repeated and produce multiple mRNAs with a common 5' leader sequence

In Trypanosoma brucei gambiense, the Ca2+ binding protein calmodulin is encoded by three identical tandemly repeated genes. The transcripts of these genes consist of several RNA species similar in size. A 35-nucleotide spliced leader sequence is present at the 5' end of each mRNA but is not encoded by DNA contiguous to these genes. We have identified two different sites for the fusion of the leader to the mRNA. These results strongly support the idea that a novel, possibly discontinuous, transcription mechanism is used by these parasites.

The Ca2+-binding protein parvalbumin: molecular cloning and developmental regulation of mRNA abundance

Parvalbumin (PV) is a Ca2+-binding protein found only in vertebrates. It is postulated to serve as a soluble relaxing factor in fast mammalian muscle. We have isolated a rat PV cDNA clone and used this as a probe to examine changes in PV mRNA during muscle and brain development. A cDNA library was constructed in PUC8/PUC9 plasmid vectors from adult poly(A)+ RNA isolated from rat gastrocnemius muscle. The library was screened with a 17-mer oligonucleotide encoding amino acids 28-33 of rat PV. One recombinant (9f) was confirmed as a PV clone by DNA sequencing and was shown to contain 73% of the protein coding sequence. Hybridization of clone 9f to RNA separated by electrophoresis revealed two species 700 and 1100 nucleotides long but genomic blotting indicates that PV may be a single copy gene. Highest levels of PV mRNA are found in the gastrocnemius, which is a fast contracting/relaxing muscle. Skin contains the next highest amount of PV mRNA followed, in order, by brain and the slow twitch soleus muscle. Rat muscle PV mRNA levels increase 15- to 20-fold between postnatal days 4 and 20 as measured by dot blot hybridization of total RNA, whereas only a slight increase was observed when young and adult brains were compared. The changes in PV mRNA during development appear to be selective, because mRNA coding for the structurally homologous Ca2+-binding protein calmodulin (CaM) was found to change only slightly in muscle. However, CaM mRNA levels decrease during the early days of brain ontogeny. Thus, the mRNAs that encode the homologous Ca2+-binding proteins PV and CaM appear to be developmentally regulated in a tissue-specific manner.

Conserved 5' flank homologies in dipteran 5S RNA genes that would function on 'A' form DNA

We have sequenced the 480 base pair (bp) repeating unit of the 5S RNA genes of the Dipteran fly Calliphora erythrocephala and compared this sequence to the three known 5S RNA gene sequences from the Dipteran Genus Drosophila (1,2). A striking series of five perfectly conserved homologies identically positioned within the 5' flanks of all four Dipteran 5S RNA coding regions has thus been identified. The spacing (12-13 bp) between all of these homologies is typical of A form rather than B form DNA. Given that the eukaryotic 5S RNA gene specific initiation factor TFIIIA (3) is a DNA unwinding protein (4), a role for these Dipteran 5' flank homologies in initiation site selection on 5S RNA genes transiently unwound for transcription is suggested. One of the Dipteran homology blocks is highly conserved in sequence and position in all but one of the eukaryotic 5S RNA gene sequences known to date (17/18 genes). Its sequence (consensus: TATAAG) and position (average center: -26 bp) are highly reminiscent of the polymerase II gene 'TATA' box (5).

Biosynthesis of calmodulin in normal and virus-transformed chicken embryo fibroblasts

We report here that the higher levels of calmodulin in transformed chicken embryo fibroblasts are due to an increase in the rate of synthesis of calmodulin that results from an increased amount of calmodulin-specific mRNA in transformed cells. Transformation of several types of eucaryotic cells by oncogenic viruses results in a two- to threefold increase in the intracellular levels of calmodulin. We used the normal chicken embryo fibroblast and its Rous sarcoma virus-transformed counterpart to examine the biosynthesis of calmodulin. We show that the higher levels of calmodulin found in transformed fibroblasts appear to be the consequence of a selective increase in the rate of synthesis of calmodulin above that of total soluble or total cellular protein. A significant difference in the rate of degradation of calmodulin or total protein between transformed and normal cells was not detected. We also examined the mechanism of the increased synthesis rate of calmodulin and show that the levels of calmodulin mRNA are increased in transformed fibroblasts as measured by both translational activity and hybridization to a calmodulin cDNA probe. It is suggested by these data that the higher levels of calmodulin in transformed cells may result from a specific increase in the rate of either calmodulin gene transcription or mRNA processing.

Isolation and characterization of calmodulin genes from Xenopus laevis

Two cDNAs derived from Xenopus laevis calmodulin mRNA have been cloned. Both cDNAs contain the complete protein-coding region and various lengths of untranslated segments. The two cDNAs encode an identical protein but differ from each other by 5% nucleotide substitutions. The 5' and 3' untranslated regions, to the extent available, are highly homologous between the two cDNAs. The predicted sequence of X. laevis calmodulin is identical to that of vertebrate calmodulins from mammals and chickens and shows one substitution compared with electric eel calmodulin. Genomic DNA sequences homologous to each of the two cDNA clones have been isolated and were shown to account for the major calmodulin-coding DNA sequences in X. laevis. These data suggest that X. laevis carries two active, nonallelic calmodulin genes. Although no complete analysis has been carried out, it appears that the X. laevis calmodulin genes are interrupted by at least four introns. The relative concentrations of calmodulin mRNA have been estimated in different embryonic stages and adult tissues and found to vary by up to a factor of 10. The highest levels of calmodulin mRNA were found in ovaries, testes, and brains. In these three tissues, the two calmodulin genes appear to be expressed at approximately equal levels.

Biosynthesis of calmodulin in normal and virus-transformed chicken embryo fibroblasts

We report here that the higher levels of calmodulin in transformed chicken embryo fibroblasts are due to an increase in the rate of synthesis of calmodulin that results from an increased amount of calmodulin-specific mRNA in transformed cells. Transformation of several types of eucaryotic cells by oncogenic viruses results in a two- to threefold increase in the intracellular levels of calmodulin. We used the normal chicken embryo fibroblast and its Rous sarcoma virus-transformed counterpart to examine the biosynthesis of calmodulin. We show that the higher levels of calmodulin found in transformed fibroblasts appear to be the consequence of a selective increase in the rate of synthesis of calmodulin above that of total soluble or total cellular protein. A significant difference in the rate of degradation of calmodulin or total protein between transformed and normal cells was not detected. We also examined the mechanism of the increased synthesis rate of calmodulin and show that the levels of calmodulin mRNA are increased in transformed fibroblasts as measured by both translational activity and hybridization to a calmodulin cDNA probe. It is suggested by these data that the higher levels of calmodulin in transformed cells may result from a specific increase in the rate of either calmodulin gene transcription or mRNA processing.

Isolation and characterization of calmodulin genes from Xenopus laevis

Two cDNAs derived from Xenopus laevis calmodulin mRNA have been cloned. Both cDNAs contain the complete protein-coding region and various lengths of untranslated segments. The two cDNAs encode an identical protein but differ from each other by 5% nucleotide substitutions. The 5' and 3' untranslated regions, to the extent available, are highly homologous between the two cDNAs. The predicted sequence of X. laevis calmodulin is identical to that of vertebrate calmodulins from mammals and chickens and shows one substitution compared with electric eel calmodulin. Genomic DNA sequences homologous to each of the two cDNA clones have been isolated and were shown to account for the major calmodulin-coding DNA sequences in X. laevis. These data suggest that X. laevis carries two active, nonallelic calmodulin genes. Although no complete analysis has been carried out, it appears that the X. laevis calmodulin genes are interrupted by at least four introns. The relative concentrations of calmodulin mRNA have been estimated in different embryonic stages and adult tissues and found to vary by up to a factor of 10. The highest levels of calmodulin mRNA were found in ovaries, testes, and brains. In these three tissues, the two calmodulin genes appear to be expressed at approximately equal levels.

The intron boundaries and flanking rRNA coding sequences of Calliphora erythrocephala rDNA

We have sequenced the available cloned examples of the intron-coding sequence junctions for the rDNA of the higher Dipteran, Calliphora erythrocephala. The introns interrupt the rDNA at the same position as the type 1 intron family detected in Drosophila melanogaster and D. virilis (10,11). A duplication of 14 base pairs of the 28S rRNA coding sequence surrounds a short version of the major genomic length class of introns. This same duplication is associated with boundaries of the type 1 introns in D. virilis and D. melanogaster (10, 13,14). We have detected considerable homology between the 3' intron sequences of C. erythrocephala and D. virilis. The rRNA coding sequences flanking the introns are extremely homologous in C. erythrocephala, D. melanogaster and D. virilis, with only one small region of significant divergence. This corresponds to a variable stem region previously identified in eukaryotic 28S rRNA at a site analogous to the L1 ribosomal protein binding site of prokaryotic 23S rRNA (27).

Tissue-specific expression of a chicken calmodulin pseudogene lacking intervening sequences

An eel calmodulin cDNA probe has been used to isolate a calmodulin gene from a chicken DNA library. Sequence analysis revealed this calmodulin gene (cCM1) to contain the nucleotides that code for 148 amino acids, a termination codon, and 486 residues of 3'-noncoding sequence before an A-A-T-A-A-A poly(A) addition signal. The amino acid sequence derived from these nucleotides is 87% homologous to that of bovine brain calmodulin. cCM1 is one of two calmodulin genes in the chicken genome but is unique in that it does not contain intervening sequences to interrupt the structural segments of the protein. This suggests that cCM1 originated as a processed gene copy derived from the other calmodulin gene, cCL1, a circumstance usually associated with pseudogenes. In contrast, cCM1 appears to be a functional member of a multigene family whose expression is specific for muscle cells.