Cloning and expression of az2, a putative zinc finger transcription factor from Drosophila melanogaster

A Drosophila gene (az2), mapping to a cluster of embryonic lethals at 43BC on the polytene chromosomes, has been sequenced and found to encode a predicted protein with six consecutive C2H2 zinc finger domains. The carboxy-terminus of az2 is related to a number of Drosophila and mammalian transcription factors. The 5' end of the gene is unrelated to genes in the databases. The gene is expressed in the adult female, in both the carcass and ovary, but is most abundant in the ovary. It is expressed in the nurse cells and transported to the oocyte.