Targeted disruption of genes for gp138, a cell-fusion-related protein in Dictyostelium discoideum, revealed the existence of a third gene.

The sexual cycle of the cellular slime mold, Dictyostelium discoideum, offers a suitable experimental system to analyze sexual cell interactions. We have been analyzing molecular mechanisms involved in sexual cell fusion using complementary heterothallic strains in D. discoideum and have identified several cell surface proteins involved in the process. One of them, gp138 is present in strains of both mating types and considered to be responsible for membrane fusion itself. Two genes with high mutual homology, GP138A and GP138B, have been identified so far as encoding this protein. Expression of antisense RNA for GP138B has been shown to suppress sexual cell fusion, confirming the critical importance of these genes in sexual cell fusion. However, neither the functional relationship of the two gp138 genes nor the possibility of the existence of more genes that encode gp138 has been determined yet. In the present study, GP138A and GP138B were disrupted by homologous recombination in an effort to clarify these points. Analysis of the double knock-out mutants suggested the presence of a third gene for gp138.