In fish, several cDNAs encoding HSP70 from rainbow trout
[16], medaka [17] or zebra¢sh [18,19] have been described and
a heat-shock-induced increase of mRNA levels was shown.
Genomic sequences of a HSP70 gene family have been reported
in the teleost Fugu rubripes [20]. However, no information
concerning the sequences involved in transcriptional regulation
of ¢sh HSP70 genes was available until now.
Here, we report the isolation and characterization of the
tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus) HSP70 gene including
about 1 kb of regulatory sequences. We show that the tilapia
HSP70 promoter is able to confer heat shock regulation to a
reporter gene both in ¢sh cells and in microinjected zebra¢sh
embryos. This promoter thus represents a powerful tool to
drive ubiquitous and controlled expression of a gene of interest
in ¢sh.