cDNA cloning and characterization of neuron-specific enolase from chicken.

Chicken gamma-enolase cDNA was cloned and its sequence and tissue-specific expression were analyzed. The cDNA, consisting of 2273 bp of nucleotides, was composed of 86 bp of the 5'-noncoding region, 1305 bp of an open reading frame encoding a protein of 434 amino acids and 882 bp of the 3'-noncoding region. The deduced amino acid sequence showed higher homology (more than 90%) to those of mammalian gamma-enolases than to those of chicken alpha- or beta-enolases. Northern blot analysis has revealed that the mRNA for gamma-enolase (2.3 kb) is expressed in the brain and, to much less but significant extents, in the pituitary and adrenal gland of the chicken.