Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
1
pubmed:dateCreated
1996-4-16
pubmed:databankReference
pubmed:abstractText
All three well-studied subunits of the clotting protein fibrinogen (alpha, beta, gamma) share N-terminal structural homologies, but until recently only the beta and gamma chains were recognized as having similar globular C-termini. With the discovery of an extra exon in the human fibrinogen alpha gene (exon VI), a minor form of the alpha subunit (alpha E) with an extended beta- and gamma-like C-terminus has been identified (Fu et al., Biochemistry 31, 11968, 1992). In the present study, the polymerase chain reaction has been used to identify sequences that encode counterparts to alpha E in chicken, rabbit, rat, and baboon. The basic six-exon structure of the fibrinogen alpha genes is shown to be conserved among mammals and birds, as are the intron positions. Bipartite transcripts--still bearing an intron prior to the last exon--are found among the products of the various vertebrate fibrinogen alpha genes. The last exon represents the largest conserved segment of the gene and, in each species examined, encodes exactly 236 amino acids. The C-termini of these alpha E chains align without a single gap and are between 76 and 99% identical. Since the exon VI-encoded domain of alpha E is as well conserved as the corresponding regions of the beta and gamma chains, it follows that it is equally important and that alpha E-fibrinogen plays a vital, if as-yet unrecognized physiological role.
pubmed:grant
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:chemical
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:month
Nov
pubmed:issn
0888-7543
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Print
pubmed:day
1
pubmed:volume
30
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
71-6
pubmed:dateRevised
2007-11-14
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:year
1995
pubmed:articleTitle
Fibrinogen alpha genes: conservation of bipartite transcripts and carboxy-terminal-extended alpha subunits in vertebrates.
pubmed:affiliation
Lindsley F. Kimball Research Institute of the New York Blood Center, New York 10021, USA.
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article, Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S., Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't