Molcecular cloning of human antizyme cDNA

We have cloned the cDNA encoding the human ornithine decarboxylase antizyme from a 5'-stretch cDNA library of human B-cell lymphoma Daudi. The cloned human antizyme cDNA fragment consists of 1063 bp, has 80% homology to the rat antizyme cDNA, but shows almost no homology to the E. coli antizyme gene. Northern hybridization analysis shows that this gene is expressed in a number of human cell lines with an estimated mRNA transcript size of about 1.1 kb. The size of the mRNA suggests that the cloned cDNA fragment probably represents the full length of human antizyme mRNA transcript. Comparison of the human and rat antizymes demonstrates that they are highly conserved at both nucleotide and peptide levels.