Analysis of a cDNA encoding the major vault protein from the electric ray Discopyge ommata

The major vault protein is the predominant constituent of vaults ubiquitous large cytosolic ribonucleoprotein particles. A cDNA clone encoding the 100-kDa major vault protein (MVP100) was isolated from an electric lobe library of Discopyge ommata. The complete nucleotide sequence was determined. Northern blot analysis revealed a 2.8-kb transcript with a high expression in neural tissue. Southern blot analysis indicates that the electric ray MVP100 is a single copy-gene with at least two introns. The primary structure of major vault proteins characterized in slime mold, ray, rat and human is evolutionary highly conserved.