Isolation and characterization of the chicken c-sno gene.

We have cloned and analyzed the chicken c-sno (cellular ski novel) gene. The promoter region and all of the intron/exon boundaries have been sequenced. The gene is approx. 12-kb long and contains six exons, the first of which is noncoding. The amino-acid sequences encoded in this first coding exon of c-sno and c-ski are highly related; however, the remainder of these two genes appears to be unrelated. Although there is evidence that the transcripts of mammalian c-sno are alternatively spliced, there is no evidence that chicken c-sno is alternatively spliced. The promoter region has a high G + C content and contains neither a TATAA nor a CAAT box. Potential binding sites for the transcription factors SP1, AP1 and AP2, are present upstream from the transcription start point.