Background. The function of nxf1 (Nuclear eXport Factor 1) gene is the nuclear-cytoplasmic transport of most mRNAs. A characteristic feature of nxf1 genes in animals belonging to different taxonomic groups is the existence of an alternative transcript with a homologous intron called a cassette intron. Materials and methods. The following databases were used: Genbank (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/); Flybase (http://flybase.org/); UCSC Genome (http://genome.ucsc.edu). To build the secondary structures of nucleotide sequences we used the UNAFold v3.8 suite (http://mfold.rna.albany.edu/). Results. The existence of evolutionarily conserved sequences of intron 10–11 in nxf1 genes in vertebrates, and the presence of two poly(A) sequences of intron 5–6 in nxf1 genes of Drosophilidae, may be adaptive. The nxf1 cassette introns form characteristic secondary structures. Conclusion. The paper discusses the possible functional significance of the intron-retaining transcripts of nxf1 genes.
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