The gene structure of a cathepsin L of the shrimp Penaeus,la,vannamei
has been determined by the polymerase chain reaction. It comprises six
exons of various lengths spanning a total of 1792 bp. This architectu
re is homologous to that of rat cathepsin L, three conserved sites of
intron position have been effectively identified, with the exception o
f the third intron break-point located immediately after the cysteinyl
active site. In contrast, no similarity is observed with Drosophila o
r Plasmodium cathepsin L-like gene organizations. This gene expresses
a major cathepsin L enzyme in the hepatopancreas. The last intron is p
olymorphic, suggesting the presence of at least three different genes.
(C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.