Identification of calreticulin isoforms in the central nervous system

In the present paper we report the cloning and sequencing of the cDNA encoding two calreticulin isoforms from Xenopus laevis central nervous system. The two isoforms display 93% identity at the amino acid level. The predicted amino acid sequences of the amphibian calreticulins are very similar (76%) to those of mammalian liver and skeletal muscle. Xenopus laevis calreticulins are characterized by a very acidic c-terminal domain endowed with the endoplasmic-reticulum retention signal KDEL. The cDNAs of both clones encode an N-glycosylation consensus sequence. A third clone of calreticulin was also identified. The restriction map of this clone was clearly distinct from that of the two sequenced clones. These results indicate the existence of multiple calreticulin isoforms in the central nervous system and open questions about their functional role in different cells and/or subcellular compartments.