STRUCTURAL ORGANIZATION AND SEQUENCE-ANALYSIS OF THE GLOBIN LOCUS IN ATLANTIC SALMON

Preliminary analysis of Atlantic salmon alpha- and beta-globin genes i ndicated that these genes are linked in a 3' to 3' orientation, with t he RNA-coding sequences located on opposite strands, In this report, w e show that two different alpha-globin genes have the same orientation and are encoded on the same strand whereas two different beta-globin genes are encoded on the opposite strand and also have the same orient ation, This cluster of globin genes is divided into two subclusters: o ne for the Bohr globin genes and one for the non-Bohr globin genes, Th is is the first evidence for this type of arrangement found for globin genes, DNase I footprint analysis of two of the globin promoters show erythroid-specific transcription factor binding sites that have also been found in human and other mammalian globin genes.