PUBLICATION
Characterization of terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase and polymerase mu in zebrafish
- Authors
- Beetz, S., Diekhoff, D., and Steiner, L.A.
- ID
- ZDB-PUB-070820-15
- Date
- 2007
- Source
- Immunogenetics 59(9): 735-744 (Journal)
- Registered Authors
- Steiner, Lisa
- Keywords
- Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase, Polymerase μ, Zebrafish, Danio rerio
- MeSH Terms
-
- Amino Acid Sequence
- Animals
- DNA Nucleotidylexotransferase/genetics
- DNA Nucleotidylexotransferase/metabolism*
- DNA-Directed DNA Polymerase/genetics
- DNA-Directed DNA Polymerase/metabolism*
- Molecular Sequence Data
- Organ Specificity
- Phylogeny
- Zebrafish/metabolism*
- Zebrafish Proteins/metabolism*
- PubMed
- 17701034 Full text @ Immunogenetics
Citation
Beetz, S., Diekhoff, D., and Steiner, L.A. (2007) Characterization of terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase and polymerase mu in zebrafish. Immunogenetics. 59(9):735-744.
Abstract
Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase (TdT) contributes to the junctional diversity of immunoglobulin and T-cell receptors by incorporating nucleotides in a template-independent manner. A closely related enzyme, polymerase mu (polmu), a template-directed polymerase, plays a role in general end-joining double-strand break repair. We cloned zebrafish TdT and polmu and found them to be 43% identical in amino acid sequence. Comparisons with sequences of other species revealed conserved residues typical for TdT in the zebrafish sequence that support the template independence of this enzyme. Some but not all of these features were identified in zebrafish polmu. In adult fish, TdT expression was most prominent in thymus, pro- and mesonephros, the primary lymphoid organs in teleost fish and in spleen, intestine, and the tissue around the intestine. Polmu expression was detected not only in pro- and mesonephros, the major sites for B-lymphocyte development, but also in ovary and testis and in all tissue preparations to a low extent. TdT expression starts at 4 dpf and increases thereafter. Polmu is expressed at all times to a similar extent. In situ studies showed a strong expression of TdT and polmu in the thymic cortex of 8-week-old fish. The characterization of zebrafish TdT and polmu provide new insights in fish lymphopoiesis and addresses the importance and evolution of TdT and polmu themselves.
Genes / Markers
Expression
Phenotype
Mutations / Transgenics
Human Disease / Model
Sequence Targeting Reagents
Fish
Orthology
Engineered Foreign Genes
Mapping