Structural Organization and Sequence Analysis of the Globin Locus in Atlantic Salmon

Abstract

Preliminary analysis of Atlantic salmon α- and β-globin genes indicated that these genes are linked in a 3′ to 3′ orientation, with the RNA-coding sequences located on opposite strands. In this report, we show that two different α-globin genes have the same orientation and are encoded on the same strand whereas two different β-globin genes are encoded on the opposite strand and also have the same orientation. This cluster of globin genes is divided into two subclusters: one for the Bohr globin genes and one for the non-Bohr globin genes. This is the first evidence for this type of arrangement found for globin genes. DNase I footprint analysis of two of the globin promoters show erythroid-specific transcription factor binding sites that have also been found in human and other mammalian globin genes.