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Michelob_x is the missing inhibitor of apoptosis protein antagonist in mosquito genomes
Author(s) -
Zhou Lei,
Jiang Guohua,
Chan Gina,
Santos Carl P,
Severson David W,
Xiao Lei
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
embo reports
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.584
H-Index - 184
eISSN - 1469-3178
pISSN - 1469-221X
DOI - 10.1038/sj.embor.7400473
Subject(s) - genome , biology , apoptosis , inhibitor of apoptosis , computational biology , virology , genetics , evolutionary biology , gene , programmed cell death
Apoptosis is implicated in the life cycle of the malaria parasite in mosquitoes. The genome project for the primary malaria vector Anopheles gambiae showed a significant expansion of the inhibitor of apoptosis protein (IAP) and caspase gene families in comparison with Drosophila . However, because of extensive sequence divergence, no orthologue was identified for the reaper / grim ‐like IAP antagonist genes that have a pivotal role in cell death regulation in Drosophila . Using a customized searching strategy, we identified michelob_x ( mx ), a gene not predicted by the genome project, as the missing IAP antagonist in the An. gambiae and other mosquito genomes. Mx has a highly conserved amino‐terminal IAP‐binding motif. Expression of Mx induces rapid cell death in insect cell lines and is a potent tissue ablator in vivo . Its proapoptotic activity is totally dependent on the IAP‐binding motif. Like reaper in Drosophila , mx is transcriptionally induced by ultraviolet irradiation to mediate cell death.