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Silicatein Genes in Spicule-Forming and Nonspicule-forming Pacific Demosponges

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Abstract

Silicatein genes are known to be involved in siliceous spicule formation in marine sponges. Proteins encoded by these genes, silicateins, were recently proposed for nanobiotechnological applications. We studied silicatein genes of marine sponges Latrunculia oparinae collected in the west Pacific region, shelf of Kuril Islands. Five silicatein genes, LoSilA1, LoSilA1a, LoSilA2, and LoSilA3 (silicatein-α group), LoSilB (silicatein-β group), and one cathepsin gene, LoCath, were isolated from the sponge L. oparinae for the first time. The deduced amino acid sequence of L. oparinae silicateins showed high-sequence identity with silicateins described previously. LoCath contains the catalytic triad of amino acid residues Cys-His-Asn characteristic for cathepsins as well as motifs typical for silicateins. A phylogenetic analysis places LoCath between sponge silicateins-β and L-cathepsins suggesting that the LoCath gene represents an intermediate form between silicatein and cathepsin genes. Additionally, we identified, for the first time, silicatein genes (AcSilA and AcSilB) in nonspicule-forming marine sponge, Acаnthodendrilla sp. The results suggest that silicateins could participate also in the function(s) unrelated to spiculogenesis.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by a grant from the Grant Program “Creation, investigation, and modeling of biogenic and biomimetic nanomaterials” of the Far Eastern Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Pacific Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Far East Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, Vladivostok, Russia

    Valeri B. Kozhemyako, Svetlana N. Kovalchuk, Vladimir B. Krasokhin & Valeri A. Rasskazov

  2. Institute of Biology and Soil Science, Far East Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, Vladivostok, Russia

    Galina N. Veremeichik, Yuri N. Shkryl, Yuri N. Zhuravlev & Victor P. Bulgakov

  3. Institute for Automation and Control Processes, Far East Branch of Russian Academy of Science, Vladivostok, Russia

    Yuri N. Kulchin

Authors
  1. Valeri B. Kozhemyako
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  2. Galina N. Veremeichik
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  3. Yuri N. Shkryl
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  4. Svetlana N. Kovalchuk
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  5. Vladimir B. Krasokhin
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  6. Valeri A. Rasskazov
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  7. Yuri N. Zhuravlev
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  8. Victor P. Bulgakov
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  9. Yuri N. Kulchin
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Correspondence to Valeri B. Kozhemyako.

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Kozhemyako, V.B., Veremeichik, G.N., Shkryl, Y.N. et al. Silicatein Genes in Spicule-Forming and Nonspicule-forming Pacific Demosponges. Mar Biotechnol 12, 403–409 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10126-009-9225-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10126-009-9225-y

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