Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 4, 2026

Methods to Assess Subcellular Compartments of Muscle in C. elegans
Published on: November 13, 2014
Protein structural domains in the Caenorhabditis elegans unc-54 myosin heavy chain gene are not separated by introns
Abstract:
The 1,966-amino acid unc-54 myosin heavy chain sequence was determined from DNA sequence studies of the cloned gene. The gene is split by eight short introns, 48-561 base pairs long, and appears to lack a "TATA" box at its promoter. The physical map of the gene was aligned with the genetic map by locating two point mutations and three internal deletions: 0.01 map units correspond to approximately 5 kilobases. Comparison of the unc-54 protein sequence with the sequence of a second myosin heavy chain from nematode, indicates that the globular head sequence S-1 is more highly conserved than the alpha-helical coiled-coil rod. Major sites of proteolysis in S-1 are associated with variable sequences that have the characteristics of surface loops. In both genes there is no correlation between the positions of introns and the major protein structural domains.
Related Concept Videos
Organization of Genes
RNA Splicing
Alternative RNA Splicing
There are five types of alternative RNA splicing that vary in the ways the pre-mRNA segments are removed or retained in the mature mRNA. The first...
Overview of Myosin Structure and Function
Exon Recombination
Exon shuffling follows “splice frame rules.” Each exon has three reading...
Cis-regulatory Sequences

