THE HUMAN HOMOLOG OF THE NINJURIN GENE MAPS TO THE CANDIDATE REGION OF HEREDITARY SENSORY NEUROPATHY TYPE-I (HSNI)

The human ninjurin gene was isolated from a cDNA Library enriched for transcripts hom band 9q22, A 1.2-kb message was detected for ninjurin in all human tissues studied, The full-length sequence codes for a put ative 152-amiao-acid protein with 89% identity to the rat ninjurin pro tein, The mouse homologue was isolated and showed 98% amino acid ident ity to the rat protein. Mapping by FISH localized mouse localized to m ouse chromosome 13, a region that shows synteny with human chromosome 9q22. Genomic characterization Of the human gene revealed four exons c overing less than 10 kb, The map position of the human gene is between the genetic markers D9S196 and D9S197 on human chromosome band 9q22, This places the gene within the candidate regions for the degenerative neurological disorder hereditary sensory neuropathy type I and the ca ncer predisposition syndrome multiple self-healing squamous epitheliom ata. (C) 1998 Academic Press.