A HUMAN GENE THAT SHOWS IDENTITY WITH THE GENE ENCODING THE ANGIOTENSIN RECEPTOR IS LOCATED ON CHROMOSOME-11

We report the cloning of a gene, intronless in its coding region, which we have named APJ. This gene was cloned using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR), with a set of primers designed on the basis of the conservation that members of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCR) have in their transmembrane (TM) regions. The putative receptor protein, APJ, shares closest identity to the angiotensin receptor (AT1) ranging from 40 to 50% in the hydrophobic TM regions of these receptors. The transcripts for this gene were detected in many regions or the brain. PCR analysis of somatic cell lines found APJ-related sequences to be only present on chromosome 11, and high-resolution mapping by fluoresence in situ hybridization (FISH) sublocalized APJ on band q12.