Molecular analysis of mouse spermatogenesis: isolation of the t-complex polypeptide-1 gene and related sequences

The mouse t-complex is a region of chromosome 17, found in wild mouse populations, which is grossly rearranged when compared to those of normal laboratory strains. So far, two large, independent inversions have been demonstrated. The distal inversion includes the entire Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) (Artzt, Shin & Bennett, 1982; Shin et al. 1983; Pla & Condamine, 1984) and the recently discovered proximal inversion (Herrmann et al. 1986) also contains many genes, including the t-complex polypeptide-1 gene (Tcp-1) discussed in this article. Using in situ hybridization, the MHC (Lader et al. 1985) and Tcp-1 (Lyon et al. 1986) genes have been positioned on chromosome 17 and the t-complex would appear to occupy Giemsa bands 17B and 17A3, representing roughly 15 % of the chromosome. Presumably, in addition to those already mapped, many hundreds of genes are located in this region.