Pinopsin expressed in the retinal photoreceptors of a diurnal gecko |
| |
Authors: | Taniguchi Y Hisatomi O Yoshida M Tokunaga F |
| |
Institution: | Department of Earth and Space Science, Graduate School of Science, Osaka University, Japan. |
| |
Abstract: | Retinal cDNAs encoding the putative opsins, dg3 and dg4, were isolated from a diurnal gecko, Phelsuma madagascariensis longinsulae. dg3 mRNA is localized in about 20% of the thin members of type C double cones, and likely encodes an opsin of the ultraviolet-sensitive pigment. Surprisingly, dg4 is very similar to chicken pinopsin, a pineal-specific photoreceptive molecule. An anti-dg4 antiserum recognized a small population of photoreceptor outer segments in the retina and a large number of pinealocytes. Our results suggest that P. m. longinsulae expresses pinopsin in its retina, which usually plays a role as a photoreceptive molecule in the pineal organ. |
| |
Keywords: | |
本文献已被 PubMed 等数据库收录! |
|