Conserved and Variant Molecular and Functional Features of Multiple Egg Yolk Precursor Proteins (Vitellogenins) in White Perch (Morone americana) and other Teleosts

Three complete cDNAs encoding different forms of vitellogenin (Vtg) were isolated from a white perch (Morone americana) liver cDNA library and characterized with respect to immunobiochemical and functional features of the three Vtgs and their product yolk proteins (YPs) in this species and in the congeneric striped bass (Morone saxatilis). The two longest cDNAs encoded Vtgs with a complete suite of yolk protein domains that, based on comparisons with vtg sequences from other species, were categorized as VtgAa and VtgAb using the current nomenclature for multiple teleost Vtgs. The shorter cDNA encoded a Vtg that lacked a phosvitin domain, had a shortened C-terminus, and was categorized as VtgC. Mapping of peptide sequences from the purified Vtgs and their derived YPs to Vtg sequences deduced from the cDNAs definitively identified the white perch VtgAa, VtgAb, and VtgC proteins. Detailed comparisons of the primary structures of each Vtg with partial or complete sequences of Morone yolk proteins or of Vtgs from other fishes revealed conserved and variant structural elements of teleost Vtgs with functional significance, including, as examples, signal peptide cleavage sites, dimerization sites, cathepsin D protease recognition sites, and receptor-binding domains. These comparisons also yielded an interim revision of the classification scheme for multiple teleost Vtgs.