Novel antizyme gene in Danio rerio expressed in brain and retina

The synthesis of the protein antizyme requires a +1 ribosomal frameshift event. The frameshifting serves as a regulatory sensor. Antizyme homologs have been identified in diverse organisms ranging from yeast to human and characterized in a disparate subset. Most vertebrates have multiple antizyme paralogs. Here we present identification in the zebrafish Danio rerio of a heretofore unknown member of the antizyme gene family. This novel antizyme does not correspond to any of the known orthologous groups in vertebrates and unlike most other antizymes is preferentially expressed in the retinal ganglion cell layer of the eye. In addition to the retina, it is also expressed in the brain and somites.