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We used subtractive hybridization to isolate clones of gamma 7, a 68 residue G-protein gamma subunit. Northern blotting and in situ hybridization reveal that the gamma 7 subunit mRNA is expressed primarily in medium-sized neurons of the neostriatum and nucleus accumbens and neurons of the olfactory tubercle, and at low levels in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampal formation and laminae II-III, and V of the neocortex. The gamma 7 mRNA is translocated into dendrites of neurons in the neostriatum and the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus. gamma 7 is expressed at relatively very low concentrations in peripheral tissues. The selective pattern of gamma 7 expression within the brain is highly reminiscent of those of the striatum-enriched adenylyl cyclase ACST, dopamine receptors, and the alpha subunit of G(olf), suggesting that, in striatum, gamma 7 may be a subunit of a G(olf) alpha-containing G protein that couples dopamine receptors selectively to ACST.

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Nucleotide sequence analysis of a cDNA clone of a rat cortex‐enriched mRNA identifies a novel integral membrane protein of 82 amino acids. The encoded protein is named cortexin to reflect its enriched expression in cortex. The amino acid sequence of rat cortexin and its mouse homologue are nearly identical (98% similarity), and both contain a conserved single membrane‐spanning region in the middle of each sequence. Northern blot analysis shows that cortexin mRNA is brain‐specific, cortexenriched, and present at significant levels in fetal brain, with peak expression in postnatal rodent brain. In situ hybridization studies detect cortexin mRNA primarily in neurons of rodent cerebral cortex, but not in cells of the hindbrain or white matter regions. The function of cortexin may be particularly important to neurons of both the developing and adult cerebral cortex.