Cloning of full-length coding sequence of tree shrew CD3ε and prediction of its molecular characteristics

The use of tree shrews (Tupaia belangeri) in human disease studies demands essential research tools, in particular cellular markers and their monoclonal antibodies for immunological studies. Here we cloned the full-length cDNAs encoding CD3ε from total RNA of the spleen, liver and peripheral blood of tree shrews and analyzed their structural characteristics in comparison with other mammals by Discovery Studio software. The results showed that the open reading frame sequence of tree shrew CD3ε was 582 bp, encoding 194 amino acids. The overall structure of tree shrew CD3ε protein was similar to its counterparts of other mammals, intracellular and transmembrane domain highly conserved. However, detailed analysis revealed two potential glycosylation sites and different surface charges in the extracellular domain. Availability of the entire open-reading-frame and related sequence information would therefore facilitate the preparation of monoclonal antibodies against tree shrew CD3 and further studies for its function.