Molecular cloning and developmental expression of the halibut thyroid hormone receptor‐α

Abstract

To analyse the role of thyroid hormones in development of the halibut Hippoglossus hippoglossus , a cDNA library was constructed from mRNA isolated from metamorphosing halibut larvae and approximately 500 000 recombinants were screened using a probe derived from the thyroid hormone receptor (TR)‐α gene of the frog Xenopus laevis . A single positive clone was isolated and sequenced. It was found to contain the entire coding sequence of the halibut TR‐α gene. Expression of the TR‐α gene during halibut development was monitored using reverse‐transcriptase polymerase chain reaction, which showed that there is a several‐fold increase in the level of TR‐α expression around the time of hatching but that the level of TR‐α expression is relatively constant thereafter.

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