MRNAs encoding zinc finger protein isoforms are expressed by alternative splicing of an in-frame intron in fission yeast

We report here that a gene encoding a protein with three zinc fingers is expressed predominantly to produce a protein containing only two zinc fingers in the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe. A third zinc finger resides within the in-frame intron that is normally spliced out. By RT-PCR analysis, we detected a minor transcript encoding a protein with three zinc fingers. Such alternative splicing for assortment of zinc finger domains have been reported in animals and implicated in switching of the target genes expressed specifically during development. This is the first report of the occurrence of such zinc finger assortment in lower eucaryotes.