Organization, sequence, and expression of the gene encoding IGFII from barramundi (Teleosteii; Lates calcarifer)

We have characterized the gene encoding IGFII from the teleost fish species barramundi, Lates calcarifer. The barramundi gene spans 5.5 kb of DNA and comprises four exons and three introns. The barramundi and salmon IGFII genes share > 85% sequence similarity across all the exons and also share some regions of high sequence identity within the promoter regions and the introns. The mature barramundi IGFII peptide comprises 70 amino acid residues and shares 84 and 96% similarity with salmonid and seabream IGFII, respectively, with the majority of replacements located in regions cleaved from the mature peptide. IGFII mRNA transcripts were detected in liver, muscle, intestine, gill, heart, and brain from juvenile barramundi. This distribution mirrors that seen in the rainbow trout and seabream and extends the tissue types which synthesize IGFII in fish to include the intestine.