ANALYSIS OF EXPRESSED SEQUENCE TAGS FROM HEPATOPANCREATIC cDNA LIBRARY OF COMMON CARP(CYPRINUS CARPIO) AND CHARACTERIZATION OF LB-Fabp mRNA

A representative cDNA library obtained from hepatopanereas of common carp (Cyprinus carpio) was constructed, and 1016 expressed sequence tags were generated assembling into 115 contiguous sequences and 282 singletons. 215 (54.15%) of the assembled sequences were annotated based upon matching known genes in the GenBank public Databas-es. Functional categorization and comparative analyses of the sequence provided gene identities, expression information and a solid base for further research on common carp hepatopancreas. High expression of liver basic fatty acid binding protein (Lb-Fabp) (11/1016 ESTs) in the library was detected. Two types of Lb-Fabpa and Lb-Fabpb had an open reading frame of 381 bp encoding 126 amino acids, mRNA expression of Lb-Fabps in embryos, larva and adult common carp tissues were determined using semi-quantitative RT-PCR followed by Southern Blot analysis. Lb-Fabp mRNA was expressed with high levels in hepatopancreas, middle intestine and posterior intestine. Low levels of Lb-Fabp mRNA expression were observed in testis and skin, while much lower levels in muscle, brain, ovary, kidney, spleen, gill and heart. No Lb-Fabp mRNA expression was observed in fat and anterior intestine. Lb-Fabp mRNA was first observed in neurula stage, and expressed higher in the following stages. The expression pattern of Lb-Fabp mRNA suggests that common carp Lb-FABPs play an im-portant role in lipid metabolism after the morphogenesis of hepatopancreas and intestine.