| First Author | Finocchiaro G | Year | 1993 |
| Journal | Eur J Biochem | Volume | 213 |
| Issue | 3 | Pages | 1003-8 |
| PubMed ID | 8504797 | Mgi Jnum | J:320288 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:6870989 | Doi | 10.1111/j.1432-1033.1993.tb17847.x |
| Citation | Finocchiaro G, et al. (1993) cDNA cloning and mitochondrial import of the beta-subunit of the human electron-transfer flavoprotein. Eur J Biochem 213(3):1003-8 |
| abstractText | We have isolated a cDNA clone which encodes the entire beta-subunit of human electron-transferring flavoprotein (ETF) by screening an expression library from human liver using polyclonal antibodies against porcine ETF. This cDNA encodes a protein of 255 amino-acid residues with a predicted molecular mass of 27,877 Da which shows a high degree of similarity with partial amino-acid sequences obtained from both rat liver and Paracoccus denitrificans beta-ETF. Northern-blot analysis shows that the human beta-ETF mRNA is approximately 1 kb in size and is abundant in liver, heart and skeletal muscle. Incubation with intact mitochondria indicates that the cDNA-encoded beta-ETF polypeptide contains the information necessary to reach the mitochondrial matrix. These data are in agreement with previous experiments suggesting that beta-ETF, unlike the majority of nuclear-encoded mitochondrial matrix proteins, does not have a cleavable leader peptide. Furthermore, when valinomycin is added to the incubation mixture, the import is abolished, thus demonstrating that it is an energy-dependent process. Interestingly, the sequence analysis of beta-ETF protein identifies a 26.3% identity with the Fix A gene product of the nitrogen-fixing bacterium Azorhizobium caulinodans. |
