M. Maeno et al., CLONING AND EXPRESSION OF CDNA-ENCODING XENOPUS-LAEVIS BONE MORPHOGENETIC PROTEIN-1 DURING EARLY EMBRYONIC-DEVELOPMENT, Gene, 134(2), 1993, pp. 257-261
The Xenopus laevis DNA fragment encoding a protein homologous with hum
an bone morphogenetic protein-1 (BMP-1) was amplified by polymerase ch
ain reaction (PCR) from cDNA derived from stage 26 (st.26) embryonic R
NA. Subsequently this fragment was used as a probe to isolate cDNA clo
nes by screening of a X. laevis st.24 embryonic cDNA library. Two part
ial clones (22 and 63) were obtained and the missing 5'-end of the clo
ne 22 was extended by the anchored PCR technique. The nucleotide seque
nce of the resulting clone (22AN) contained an open reading frame codi
ng for a protein with 707 deduced amino acids. Three sizes of mRNA (2.
9, 5.2 and 6.6 kb) were detected in blastula (st.9) and early gastrula
(st.10) embryos, and in hatched tadpole (st.40), but little or no exp
ression was observed in morula (st.7) and late gastrula (st.12) embryo
s, suggesting a physiological role(s) of X. laevis BMP-1 in normal emb
ryonic development.