Molecular cloning of XNLRR-1, a Xenopus homolog of mouse neuronal leucine-rich repeat protein expressed in the developing Xenopus nervous system.

We report the isolation and characterization of a Xenopus sequence, XNLRR-1, that is closely related to a gene for mouse neuronal leucine-rich repeat protein (NLRR-1). The cDNA clone is 4179 bp long and encodes a putative transmembrane glycoprotein of 718 amino acids, containing 12 leucine-rich repeats followed by one C2-type immunoglobulin-like domain and one fibronectin type-III repeat. XNLRR-1 is transcribed mainly in the developing eye area and the ventricular zone from diencephalon to hindbrain and slightly in spinal cord in Xenopus tadpoles. The similarity of the XNLRR-1 gene to other known cell adhesion molecules, together with the expression pattern, suggests that XNLRR-1 is involved in interactions at the neuronal cell surface.