Isolation and characterization of the Cetn1 gene from tufted deer (Elaphodus cephalophus)

The tufted deer, a species found only in China, has polymorphic sex chromosomes (2n = 46, 47, 48). Centrins are centrosome components in species from yeast to humans. Here, the Cetn1 gene was isolated from the testis cDNA library of tufted deer, and its expression pattern, number of gene copies, and gene structure were studied. To date, for unknown reasons, satisfactory genomic DNA of the tufted deer has not been obtained. In the present study, we extracted high molecular weight genomic DNA from tissues of the tufted deer. Results showed that genomic DNA was isolated successfully and could be used for Southern blotting of the Cetn1 gene. Centrin 1 transcripts were shown to exist in testis and the retina. It has no intron and only a single copy in the genome. Protein sequence analyses indicate that the C-terminal Ser-170, which was shown to be phosphorylated in human centrin, is not conserved except in sequences from the human, chimpanzee, and tufted deer.