Elongation Of Very Long Chain Fatty Acids Like Protein 1 (ELOVL1)

By EST database analysis and PCR of a mouse liver cDNA library, Tvrdik et al. (2000) cloned mouse Elovl1, which they called Ssc1. The deduced 279-amino acid protein contains 2 N-terminal transmembrane regions, 3 C-terminal transmembrane regions, and an ER retention signal. Elovl1, Elovl2, and Elovl3 share conserved motifs, such as an HXXHH consensus sequence, that are characteristic of fatty acid desaturases. Northern blot analysis of mouse tissues detected highest expression in stomach, lung, kidney, skin, and intestine, moderate expression in white fat, liver, spleen, brain, brown fat, heart, and muscle, and weak expression in testis.mouse Elovl1 complemented a yeast Sur4/Fen1 double-mutant and rescued the synthetic lethal phenotype, suggesting that Elovl1 plays a role in biosynthesis of C26 fatty acids and sphingolipids.