ISOLATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF GENES ENCODING 16.9 KD HEAT-SHOCK PROTEINS IN ORYZA-SATIVA

Using rice heat shock cDNA pTS1 as a probe, two 16.9 kD HSP genes were isolated from a size-selected genomic library of rice. The DNA sequences of the two rice genomic HSP genes, designated as Oshsp 16.9A and Oshsp 16.9B, were determined and analyzed, Oshsp 16.9A containd the sequence of cDNA pTS1. Comparison of Oshsp 16.9A and 16.9B genes revealed that they shared 98.8% homology in terms of nucleotide sequence in the coding region, and 99.3% homlogy at the level of the deduced amino acid sequence. Multiple copies of heat shock-like promoter sequence (HSE) can be identified upstream from the putative TATA box, TATAAATA. The initiation site of transcription for the Oshsp 16.9A and 16.9B, was were identified by the primer extension method is located 131 bases upstream from the coding region and 26 bases downstream from the TATA box.