Unique chimeric composition of the trehalase gene from brine shrimp, Artemia franciscana

To investigate the exon/intron structure of the Artemia trehalase gene, four overlapping clones were isolated from a genome library derived from an inbred strain of crustacean Artemia franciscana, and a 49 kb genetic area was re-constructed. The re-constructed area contained eight exons corresponding to the trehalase cDNA sequence that we had previously reported [1]. Comparative analysis of the Artemia trehalase gene with other animal trehalase genes revealed the existence of conserved exon/intron boundaries among different phyla. Comparison of the 5' UTR region of trehalase mRNA obtained by the 5' RACE method with the trehalase genes indicated the existence of a novel exon/intron boundary in the region designated "Exon I". Surprisingly, a part of a mitochondrial ribosomal protein gene (MRP-S33) was found to be inserted in the 5' UTR region of the trehalase gene. This sequence had the same polyadenylation signal that the Artemia MRP-S33 cDNAs did. Using the 3' RACE method, it was demonstrated that the poly (A) additional signal is still functional and that the chimeric mRNAs composed of the 5' UTR of the trehalase mRNA and of the 3' end derived from the MRP-S33 gene are transcribed.