MRNAs encoding zinc finger protein isoforms are expressed by alternative splicing of an in-frame intron in fission yeast

We report here that a gene encoding a protein with three zinc fingers is ex pressed predominantly to produce a protein containing only two zinc fingers in the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe. A third zinc finger reside s within the in-frame intron that is normally spliced out. By RT-PCR analys is, we detected a minor transcript encoding a protein with three zinc finge rs. Such alternative splicing for assortment of zinc finger domains have be en reported in animals and implicated in switching of the target genes expr essed specifically during development. This is the first report of the occu rrence of such zinc finger assortment in lower eucaryotes.