CLONING AND CHARACTERIZATION OF A NOVEL GENE, WS-3, IN HUMAN-CHROMOSOME 8P11-P12

A novel human gene referred to as the WS-3 gene, in the short arm of h uman chromosome 8, was cloned by a combination of exon trapping, therm al asymmetric interlaced-PCR (TAIL-PCR) and the Marathon-Ready cDNA am plification method. The gene consists of 7 exons separated by 6 intron s, and is at the telomere side of the STS marker, D8S1055. The full-le ngth WS-3 gene contains 1052 nucleotides and codes for a protein of 19 0 amino acids with a calculated mel. wt. of 20 747. Southern blot expe riments showed that the WS-3 gene exists as a single copy in the human genome. A protein encoded by the WS-3 gene has an R-G-D (Arg-Gly-Asp) motif in the N-terminal region, which seems to confer adhesive proper ties to macromolecular proteins like fibronectin. Although WS-3 is a s mall gene with unknown biological function, its ubiquitous expression in Various tissues and organs suggests that the encoded protein is one of the essential components of all organs and tissues. (C) 1997 Elsev ier Science B.V.