Cloning and sequencing of the Aa-Pri1 gene specifically expressed during fruiting initiation in the edible mushroom Agrocybe aegerita, and analysis of the predicted amino-acid sequence.

A gene (Aa-Pri1) specifically expressed during fruiting initiation of the basidiomycete Agrocybe aegerita was cloned. The total length of the Aa-Pri1 gene was 492 bp including a class-II intron of 54 bp size located at nt +125; the open reading frame encoded for a 145-aa protein of 16 093 Da. CCAAT (-156) and TATAAAT (- 83) boxes, and T(A)5T(A)2 (+593) and T(A)3T(A)4T(A)6T (+608) putative polyadenylation sequences were identified. The putative transcription start point was located at position 49. The Aa-Pri1 transcript was abundant only during fruiting initiation and was undetectable in the other stages of development. The Aa-Pri1 protein was hydrophilic, with a 20-aa hydrophobic motif in the NH2-terminal part, determining a putative alpha-helix. Two putative glycosylation sites were identified. Aa-Pri1 protein activity may be controlled by the phosphorylation of several residues by different protein kinases.