Cloning of a Novel Member of the Reticulon Gene Family (RTN3): Gene Structure and Chromosomal Localization to 11q13

A novel member of the neuron-specific protein (NSP) or newly named reticulon (RTN) gene family was isolated during a subtraction cloning between macula and peripheral retina. The mRNA for this NSP/RTN-like gene is approximately threefold more abundant in macula than in peripheral retina. The cDNA is 2527 bp long and contains an open reading frame of 236 amino acids. The deduced peptide shows a strong similarity to the NSP/RTN and tropomyosin-like gene families but it is clearly a novel member. The gene contains seven exons and spans more than 15 kb. The gene was localized to chromosome 11q13 between markers D11S4535 and D11S4627 using somatic cell hybrid panels. Southern blot analysis identified the presence of a pseudogene(s) that was subsequently localized to chromosome 4. Multitissue Northern blot analysis found this gene to be widely expressed in human tissues with the highest expression in the brain. We are calling this gene RTN3 to reflect the newly proposed nomenclature.