Molecular cloning and sequencing of the plasma-membrane Ca2+ pump of pig smooth muscle

cDNAs coding for the plasma-membrane Ca2+ pump have been isolated from a pig smooth-muscle cDNA library and sequenced. The open reading frame encodes a protein of 1220 amino acids, which corresponds to the one already described in a human teratoma cell line. We demonstrate here that this cDNA probably represents the only isoform of the plasma-membrane Ca2(+)-transport ATPase expressed in this smooth muscle. There is no evidence for the expression of any other plasma-membrane Ca2(+)-pump gene, or for the presence of other alternatively spliced isoforms. These results are in apparent contradiction to those obtained on protein levels which demonstrate the reaction of at least two different polypeptides with a panel of antibodies against the plasma-membrane ATPase. It is suggested that these two polypeptides could result from a post-translational modification of one single enzyme.