cDNA sequence of the lymphotoxin beta chain from a marsupial, Macropus eugenii (Tammar wallaby).

In humans and mice, the lymphotoxin (LT) complex is a heterotrimer that consists of alpha (LT-alpha) and beta (LT-beta) chains, predominantly in the ratio 1:2 (LT-alpha:LT-beta). LT-beta is a type II membrane-bound protein that anchors the complex to the surface of activated lymphocytes and, in gene targeting experiments in mice, has been shown to be crucial for normal lymphoid organogenesis. However, a similar role for LT in noneutherian mammals has not yet been established. Indeed, there has been no previous evidence for the existence of LT in noneutherian species. We have isolated, by rapid amplification of cDNA ends on mammary lymph node cDNA, the transcript coding for LT-beta from the tammar wallaby, Macropus eugenii. This constitutes the first report of an LT component from a marsupial and hence from a noneutherian mammal. The predicted amino acid sequence encoded by this transcript shares 63% and 46% sequence identity with mouse and human LT-beta, respectively.