Isolation and characterization of OsDMC1, the rice homologue of the yeast DMC1 gene essential for meiosis

Yeast DMC1 is a meiosis-specific gene required for homologous chromosome pairing in meiosis. Using degenerate primers designed according to amino acid motifs conserved in yeast Dmc1 and Arabidopsis AtDmc1, we obtained full-length cDNA of a rice homologue of the DMC1 gene (OsDMC1) by RT-PCR and rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACEs). OsDmc1 exhibited 53% amino acid sequence identity to yeast Dmc1 and 81% to AtDmc1. OsDMC1 was expressed at high-levels in reproductive organs, low-levels in roots, and undetectable levels in leaves and seedlings. Southern blot analyses revealed that OsDMC1 is one of two DMC1 homologues present in rice.