Partial sequence of connectin-like 1200K-protein in obliquely striated muscle of a polychaete (Annelida): evidence for structural diversity from vertebrate and invertebrate connectins.

Vertebrate striated muscle contains the giant elastic protein connectin that maintains the position of the A-band at the center of the sarcomere during repeated muscular contraction and relaxation. Connectin-like molecules may perform conserved functions in vertebrate and invertebrate striated and oblique muscles, although less is known about the structure of invertebrate connectins at present. The protein that maintains such a structure is present not only in vertebrate striated muscle, but also in invertebrate striated and oblique muscle.