Open AccessIdentification and sequence analysis of the ribosomal DNA promoter region ofCrithidia fasciculata
Author(s) -
Ernst J.M. Grondal,
Raymond Evers,
A. W. C. A. Cornelissen
Publication year - 1990
Publication title -
nucleic acids research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 9.008
H-Index - 537
eISSN - 1362-4954
pISSN - 0305-1048
DOI - 10.1093/nar/18.6.1333
Subject(s) - biology , crithidia fasciculata , promoter , genetics , ribosomal rna , microbiology and biotechnology , gene , transcription (linguistics) , ribosomal dna , dna , gene expression , phylogenetics , linguistics , philosophy
We have identified the promoter region of the large ribosomal DNA repeat unit of Crithidia fasciculata by northern blotting and nuclear run-on analyses. These data show that transcription starts approximately 1 kb upstream of the 18S rRNA gene. S1 protection experiments and sequence analysis of this area resulted in a precise localization of the start site. We have been unable to identify conserved sequence element(s) by a direct comparison of the crithidial RNA polymerase I promoter region and similar promoter regions of other eukaryotes; not even to the promoter region of the more closely related kinetoplastid species, Trypanosoma brucei. The absence of homology within the primary sequence of the promoter region, which is also found in other eukaryotes, might explain the observed species specificity of in vivo and in vitro rDNA transcription, since this resides in the interaction of initiation factor(s) and the core promoter domain.