Cloning the prophenoloxidase cDNA and monitoring the expression of proPO mRNA in prawns (Macrobrachium rosenbergii) stimulated in vivo by CpG oligodeoxynucleotides.

The prophenoloxidase (proPO) system forms the basis of the non-specific defence system in crustaceans. The aim of this study was to develop an RT-PCR procedure to determine proPO gene expression. We used several degenerate primers designed from the conserved regions in amino acid sequences of proPOs from other species to clone the possible cDNA(s) from the haemocytes of the prawn Macrobrachium rosenbergii.