Cloning of a low-temperature-induced gene lti2 from the cyanobacterium Anabaena variabilis M3 that is homologous to alpha-amylases.

A gene called lti2 which is induced by a shift to a low temperature was isolated from the cyanobacterium Anabaena variabilis strain M3. This gene contained an open reading frame of 552 amino acid residues which exhibited homology to known alpha-amylases. The level of lti2 transcript increased 40-fold within an hour after a temperature shift from 38 to 22 degrees C and then slowly decreased to a low steady-state level. A less extensive expression of the lti2 gene is also induced by a temperature shift from 22 to 38 degrees C.