Mol. Hum. Reprod. Advance Access originally published online on February 4, 2008
Molecular Human Reproduction 2008 14(3):143-150; doi:10.1093/molehr/gan005
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Germline expression of mammalian CTF18, an evolutionarily conserved protein required for germ cell proliferation in the fly and sister chromatid cohesion in yeast
1Center for Research on Reproduction and Women's Health, School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, 1307 BRB II/III, 421 Curie Blvd, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6160, USA 2Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA 3Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 9104, USA
4Correspondence address. Tel: +1-215-573-1944; Fax: +1-215-573-7627; E-mail: kberkowitz{at}obgyn.upenn.edu
Cutlet/CTF18 encodes an evolutionarily conserved protein that is crucial for germline development in Drosophila melanogaster. Loss of function of cutlet in the fly results in a sterile phenotype due to the failure of germline stem cells to proliferate. CTF18 was first identified in Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a sister chromatid cohesion factor that is essential for the faithful transmission of chromosomes during DNA replication. We have cloned and characterized the human and mouse CTF18 orthologs of the D. melanogaster gene, cutlet. We have demonstrated that CTF18 mRNA is expressed in human and mouse testis and ovary, and that CTF18 protein is expressed throughout the male and female germline of the mouse. We suggest a unique biological role for CTF18 in mammalian germ cell development based on its mammalian germline expression, high degree of evolutionary conservation, and role in DNA replication and chromosomal stability in yeast.
Key words: CTF18/DNA replication/germ cell development/germline expression/CTF18-replication factor C-like complex
Submitted on June 20, 2007; resubmitted on January 17, 2008; accepted on January 22, 2008.