The organization of a galectin gene from Teladorsagia circumcincta

Galectins are a family of soluble beta-galactoside-binding lectins that are conserved amongst a broad range of organisms. We have previously isolated cDNA clones coding for galectins from the sheep gastrointestinal nematode parasites Teladorsagia circumcincta, Haemonchus contortus and Trichostrongylus colubriformis, revealing a high level of identity between these molecules. This subsequent study reports the organization of the T. circumcincta Tci-gal-1 galectin gene. The coding region is broken into eight exons covering 6.6 kbp, with introns ranging in size from 55 base pairs (bp) to 2.8 kbp. Comparisons with recently reported galectin structures from Caenorhabditis elegans reveal strong architectural similarity between galectins from the parasitic and free-living nematodes, but this structure is not conserved in mammalian galectins.