Molecular cloning and sequence analysis of the chick melanocortin 1-receptor gene. 
The chick melanocortin 1-receptor gene was isolated.  It is found to be an intronless gene encoding a 314 amino acid protein, sharing 64% identity with mammalian counterparts.  A cis-element responsible for melanocyte-specific transcription is found in its 5' upstream region.  It is probable that the expression of the receptor in melanocytes is closely correlated with that of melanogenesis-related genes.