A NOVEL SUBTYPE OF G-PROTEIN-COUPLED RECEPTOR KINASE, GRK7, IN TELEOST CONE PHOTORECEPTORS

Two kinds of retinal cDNA fragments (OlGRK-R and -C) encoding the puta tive G-protein-coupled receptor kinases (GRKs) were isolated from meda ka, Oryzias latipes, OlGRK-R appears to be closely related to the rhod opsin kinase (RK) found in the outer segments of mammalian photorecept ors, but the deduced amino acid sequence of OlGRK-C shows less than 50 % identity to those of GRKs known to date, suggesting that OlGRK-C is a novel GRK subtype (GRK7). The mRNA of OlGRK-R is detectable in rods, and that of OlGRK-C is found in ail four types of cone photoreceptor. The C-terminal of OlGRK-R has a consensus sequence for farnesylation, whereas, surprisingly, OlGRK-C has a consensus sequence for geranylge ranylation, Our result are consistent with the concept that lower vert ebrates have rod-and cone-specific opsin kinases. (C) 1998 Federation of European Biochemical Societies.