Characterization of two genes transcribed from a divergent promotor in Arabidopsis thaliana and encoding plastid-targeted proteins

Abstract

As part of the Arabidopsis genome sequencing project, approximately 85kb of sequence data on chromosome 4 was generated in this laboratory. This included a cosmid clone called cAt4S5 containing a genomic insert of 13.3kb and which provided the basis for this study. Using this sequence as a search tool in BLAST searches and as a probe in cDNA library screening we isolated two cDNA clones transcribed divergently from a promoter region of approximately 450bp. The cDNA sequences were homologous to dihydrolipoamide dehydrogenases (DLD) from many organisms and a chloroplast outer envelope protein (OEP) from pea, respectively. The aim of this study was to characterise these genes in terms of sequence and expression and the localization and function of their products.