Nucleotide sequence of a nearly full‐length cDNA coding for pepsinogen of rat gastric mucosa

A nearly full‐length rat pepsinogen cDNA was isolated from a rat gastric mucosa cDNA library and its nucleotide sequence was determined. The cDNA comprises 1370 base pairs (bp), including the 5′‐non‐coding region (60 bp), the coding nucleotide sequence (1176 bp) and the 3′‐non‐coding region (131 bp). The predicted amino acid sequence of rat prepepsinogen (392 residues) contains a 16‐residue signal sequence followed by the pepsionogen moiety of 376 residues. Rat pepsinogen has an amino acid composition characteristic of C‐type pepsinogens and is much more homologous in amino acid sequence with C‐type pepsinogens than A‐type pepsinogens. These results indicate that the major form of rat pepsinogen can be classified as a C type pepsinogen.