TISSUE-SPECIFIC EXPRESSION OF THE HUMAN LAMININ ALPHA-5-CHAIN, AND MAPPING OF THE GENE TO HUMAN-CHROMOSOME 20Q13.2-13.3 AND TO DISTAL MOUSE-CHROMOSOME0-2 NEAR THE LOCUS FOR THE RAGGED (RA) MUTATION

To investigate the function of the laminin alpha 5-chain, previously i dentified in mice, cDNA clones encoding the 953-amino-acid carboxy ter minal G-domain of the human laminin alpha 5-chain were characterized, Northern blot analysis showed that the laminin alpha 5-chain is expres sed in human placenta, heart, lung, skeletal muscle, kidney, and pancr eas, The human laminin alpha 5-chain gene (LAMAS) mas assigned to chro mosome 20q13.2-q13,3 by in situ hybridization, and the mouse gene (Lam a5) was mapped by linkage analysis to a syntonic region of distal chro mosome 2, close to the locus for the ragged (Ra) mutation. (C) 1997 Fe deration of European Biochemical Societies.