A novel group of zebrafish Class II ADP-ribosylation factors and their potential role in photoreceptor development
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Abstract
In this study we identified an unknown set of Class II Arf isoforms in zebrafish. Bioinformatics analyses grouped these paralogues into three distinct clades. Using antisense morpholino gene knockdown, we tested the effect of loss of each zebrafish Class II Arf on early development and photoreceptor organization. At 5 days post fertilization gross morphological defects in Arf II-A2 morphants was evident, while photoreceptor disorganization was seen in Arf II-C1 morphants. In situ hybridization experiments confirmed Arf II-C1 expression in regions of the brain and in the retina. We also found that zebrafish Arf II-C1 does not possess properties that are conserved in other Arfs. Most Class II Arfs examined in this study from different species localized to ERGIC-53 positive puncta in COS1 cells; while Arf II-C1 did not. Furthermore, in contrast to hArf4, Arf II-C1 quickly became cytosolic and dissociated from punctate structures in the presence of BFA.