Chymotrypsin genes in the malaria mosquitoes Anopheles aquasalis and Anopheles darlingi

Abstract

Four closely related chymotrypsin genes were identified in Anopheles aquasalis and Anopheles darlingi (Anachy1, Anachy2, Andchy1 and Andchy2). The deduced amino-acid sequences were compared to other chymotrypsin sequences. These sequences were used to infer phylogenetic relationships among the different species. Genomic cloning revealed that, in contrast to An. aquasalis and A. gambiae, the chymotrypsin genomic locus in An. darlingi had a short intergenic region that accompanied the inverted position of the genes, suggesting inversion mechanisms in this species related to transposable elements. Alignments of the sequences upstream of the transcription start sites of Anachy1, Anachy2, Andchy1 and Andchy2 revealed areas with high similarity containing palindromic sequences. Northern analysis from An. aquasalis indicated that the transcription of chy 1 and 2 are induced by blood feeding.