Eukaryotic initiation factor (eIF) 4B is part of the protein complex involved in the recognition and binding of mRNA to the ribosome. Drosophila eIF4Bis a single-copy gene that encodes two isoforms, termed eIF4B-L ( kDa) and eIF4B-S ( kDa), generated as a result of the alternative recognition of two polyadeynlation signals during tran-scription termination and subsequent alternative splicing of the two pre-mRNAs. Both eIF4B mRNAs and proteins are expressed during the entire embryogenesis and life cycle
